is a member of the

Japan Self-Defense Forces The Japan Self-Defense Forces ( ja, 自衛隊, Jieitai; abbreviated JSDF), also informally known as the Japanese Armed Forces, are the unified ''de facto''Since Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution outlaws the formation of armed forces, the ...

who served as the 31st Chief of Staff of the

Japan Ground Self-Defense Force The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force ( ja, 陸上自衛隊, Rikujō Jieitai), , also referred to as the Japanese Army, is the land warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Created on July 1, 1954, it is the largest of the three service b ...

. A graduate of the

National Defense Academy of Japan National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

, he later returned to serve as vice-president of the Academy. He has served in multiple capacities, including the chief of staffs of the GSDF Northern Army during the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

of the

Chūbu region The , Central region, or is a region in the middle of Honshu, Honshū, Japan, Japan's main island. In a wide, classical definition, it encompasses nine prefectures (''ken''): Aichi Prefecture, Aichi, Fukui Prefecture, Fukui, Gifu Prefecture ...

Army Headquarters, and has even acted as a Japanese foreign representative when meeting officers of other countries. Yoshifumi Hibako and George W Casey Jr 20090823

Yoshifumi Hibako and George W Casey Jr 20090823

Life

Hibako entered the

, graduating in 1974.

Career

After graduating from the Academy, Hibako entered the

in 1974. He participated in the reconstruction phase of the

as leader of the GSDF Northern Army. As a mission of the type that the

had never dealt with, Hibako had to determine what tactics and equipment to use without much past guidance. In 2007, he served as vice-president of his alma mater, the National Defense Academy. Hibako was appointed the 32nd Chief of Staff of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force in March 2009. His role includes advising the

Ministry of Defense {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

and overseeing the administration of the GSDF, and ensuring defense, disaster relief, and maintaining ties with foreign military. He has also acted in a semi-diplomatic role, meeting with

Minister of National Defense of the People's Republic of China The Ministry of National Defense of the People's Republic of China (), or the "National Defense Ministry" () for short, is the second-ranked cabinet level executive department under the State Council. It is headed by the Minister of Nationa ...

Liang Guanglie Liang Guanglie (, also spelled as Liang Kuang-lieh; born December 1940 in Santai, Mianyang, Sichuan) is a retired general and former Minister for National Defense in the People's Republic of China. Life and career Liang joined the army in J ...

to discuss relations between the two countries in February 2010. He represented Japan at a conference for world militaries to discuss disaster relief and management.

Medals

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

Degree Commander Medal (2011)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hibako, Yoshifumi Chiefs of Staff of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force 1951 births Military personnel from Fukuoka Prefecture Living people Military leaders of the Iraq War Foreign recipients of the Legion of Merit National Defense Academy of Japan alumni