Ministry of Defence (Arab Union)

The Ministry of Defence (Arabic: وزارة الدفاع wuzārat ad-difā‘) is an executive department of the federal government of the Arab Union, subordinate to the Council of Ministers. It is responsible for realising national defence policy, and oversees the Arab Union Armed Forces and supporting agencies such as military police, military intelligence, and missile and aerospace defence. The Ministry of Defence also supervises and regulates the multiple state-owned and private enterprises which make up the national defence industry.

Employing over 732,000 civilian personnel and the 7.5 million active and reserve personnel of the armed forces, the Ministry of Defence is by far the largest government department in the Arab Union and one of the largest employers in the country. It is headquartered on Victory Square in Markez Asimeh, Nasser City. Roman Kindi has served as Minister of Defence since September 2011.

Structure

 * General Staff of the Arab Union Armed Forces: The General Staff consists of the commanders of each of the active and reserve service branches and their deputies, the directors of the three military intelligence directorates, the director of military police, and the Chief of the General Staff, the last of whom is usually the highest ranking officer in the armed forces and who reports directly to the Minister of Defence, ultimately responsible to the President of the Arab Union in his capacity as commander-in-chief.

Directorates
The multiple responsibilities of the Ministry of Defence are divided between 15 civilian directorates, each headed by a director who is appointed by and answers to the Minister of Defence:


 * Military Police Directorate: Responsible for law enforcement within the active and reserve service branches of the armed forces and the National Guard, as well as assisting civilian police agencies with maintenance of public security during large public events, civil unrest or domestic armed conflict, and major disaster events;
 * Military Intelligence Directorate: Supervises and coordinates between highly trained military intelligence and counterintelligence units in the Arab Army;
 * Air Force Intelligence Directorate: Traditionally the intelligence agency responsible to the Arab Air Force, for whose military intelligence and counterintelligence needs it continues to be exclusively responsible. Today the directorate is also de facto (unofficially) responsible for multiple intelligence and security matters apart from the Air Force and military, and is considered one of the most if not the most powerful of security agencies in the Arab Union, possibly even more so than the Emni's "B" (Political Security) Directorate;
 * Naval Intelligence Directorate: Responsible for the intelligence needs of the Arab Navy and its Marine Forces, with a secondary role involving the provision of intelligence and reconnaissance support to the Arab Union Coast Guard;
 * Reserve Forces Directorate: Supervises the activities and operations and supports the needs of the military's reserve forces;
 * Military Logistical Supply Directorate: Responsible for timely and efficient delivery of all materiel and other products required by the three service branches, from food, clothing, and personal items to weapons, ammunition, and vehicles;
 * Military Medical Directorate: Responsible for training and providing expert medical units to the armed forces at the company level and above; each medical unit consists of at least one physician, one surgeon, and three nurses, as well as between 5 and 20 support personnel. The directorate maintains a close relationship with the National Health Authority (NHA), from which a majority of medical professionals are recruited into the armed forces;
 * National Aerospace Defence Directorate: Operates and maintains the complex infrastructure which makes up the union's anti-aircraft and missile defence systems;
 * Military Personnel Directorate: Responsible for recruiting, training and compensating active and reserve servicemembers as well as the civilian personnel of the Ministry of Defence itself;
 * Defence Directorate of Public Relations: The official spokesman for the military and Ministry of Defence, responsible for producing and disseminating all relevant publications regarding military activities and fostering a strong and regular culture of communication between the military and civilian institutions and the general population;
 * Directorate of Veterans' Affairs: Responsible for the compensation and long—term support of former servicemembers, including issuing the national veterans' pension and related credits and reimbursements, as well as funding vocational- or community-based reintegration programs and rehabilitation centres which are generally operated and staffed by the NHA;
 * Defence Industry Regulatory Directorate: Supervises and regulates arms contractors and other defence companies including both state-owned enterprises and private corporations, and also places orders for equipment as required by the military with said suppliers;
 * Arms Import and Export Directorate: Responsible for importing arms and all other military equipment from foreign suppliers, as well as exporting military hardware abroad which is a monopoly of the state;
 * Defence Legal Directorate: Responsible for representing the armed forces and Ministry of Defence in both domestic and international legal affairs;
 * Defence Budget Directorate: Responsible for ensuring funding of the armed forces by drafting and submitting to the Arab Congress the national defence budget;
 * Defence Infrastructure Directorate: Responsible for the construction and maintenance of all domestic and foreign military facilities, including but not limited to army bases, ports and airfields, armouries, fortifications, as well as these facilities' complimentary habitat and support infrastructure including civilian service and maintenance personnel.