The Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Cyprus has issued a statement regarding the change in the leadership of the National Guard General Staff (GEEF).

According to the announcement, the Director General of the Ministry of Defence, Mr. Andreas P. Loukas, on behalf of the Ministry personnel, expresses his warmest thanks to the outgoing Chief of Staff and a true friend of Cyprus, Lieutenant General Democritos Zervakis, who handed over the leadership baton, leaving behind his rich and very important work in the context of the effort made to strengthen the defence of Cyprus and strengthen the deterrent power of the National Guard.

Lieutenant General Dimokritos Zervakis assumed the leadership of the National Guard on March 18, 2020, and served as Chief until August 31, 2023. The appointment of the former chief was extended three times, once for one year during the government of Nikos Anastasiadis (upon the completion of the first 2 years) and twice during the government of Nikos Christodoulidis for a total duration of 6 months with the three-year period expiring on March 23, 2023.

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The Ministry of Defence wishes all the best to the honorable yet demanding mission undertaken by the new Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Georgios Tsitsikostas, and assures that the Ministry personnel will be by his side, making every possible effort to further strengthen the defensive and deterrent capabilities of the National Guard, in order to ensure the defence and security of the country.

Lieutenant General Georgios Tsitsikostas was born in 1964 in Tripoli and graduated from the Hellenic Military Academy in 1986. He began his career in the Special Forces in 1987. He has served, among others, as the Commander of the 3rd Special Forces Squadron, as Chief of Staff at the Headquarters of NATO Ground Forces, as Commander of the Regiment of the Hellenic Military Academy, and as Director of the Staff Office of the Chief of the Hellenic National Defence General Staff.

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As a senior Officer, he served as Director of the Staff Office of the President of the EU Military Commission, as Commander of the 13th Special Operations Command, as Deputy Commander of the 4th Army Corps, and as Commander of the Joint Special Operations Command.

As Lieutenant General he assumed the duties of the Army Reorganization Inspector and of the Coordinator for the establishment of the Special Warfare Command. He was the 1st Commander of the Special Warfare Command from June 28, 2021, to January 27, 2023.

In addition to the prescribed training of the Infantry Officers and the Special Forces schools in Greece, he studied in schools abroad such as the Special Warfare Centre and School in Fort Bragg, USA, where he was honored for his performance, the Supreme Joint War School as well as NATO Defence College, also honored for his performance.

Lieutenant General Georgios Tsitsikostas has been awarded all of the prescribed Insignia, Medals and Awards.

He graduated from the Center for Diplomacy and Strategic Studies (Paris) (Center d’ Etudes Diplomatiques et Strategiques (CEDS)) and holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration (MBA) in Human Resource Management from the University of the Aegean.

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