Lieutenant-General Jonathan Vance joined the Canadian Armed Forces in 1982. Following his graduation from Royal Roads Military College in 1986, he was commissioned as an infantry officer into the Royal Canadian Regiment.
Lieutenant-General Vance's distinguished career includes serving with the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Battalions of the Royal Canadian Regiment, where he commanded at all levels within the field force from platoon commander to brigade commander and as Joint Task Force Commander.
Lieutenant-General Vance commanded the Second Battalion, the Royal Canadian Regiment in Gagetown, New Brunswick from 2001-2003. He also commanded 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group in Edmonton from 2006 to 2008, and subsequently, deployed as Commander Joint Task Force Afghanistan and Task Force Kandahar in 2009 and again in 2010.
Following his tours in Afghanistan, Lieutenant-General Vance served on the Army Staff as Chief of Staff Land Strategy, and as Director of Staff, Strategic Joint Staff in National Defence Headquarters. Before assuming his most recent responsibilities, he completed a tour of duty as Deputy Commander, Allied Joint Force Command Naples in July 2014.
He assumed his position as Commander of the Canadian Joint Operations Command in September 2014. As part of his duties, he has overseen both the air and ground deployments against the so-called Islamic State as well as Canada’s contribution to NATO in response to Russia’s aggression in Ukraine.
On April 27, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the upcoming appointment of Lieutenant-General Jonathan Vance to succeed General Tom Lawson as Chief of the Defence Staff.
Lieutenant-General Vance holds a Bachelor of Arts in Military and Strategic Studies, Royal Roads Military College (1986) and a Master of Arts in War Studies, Royal Military College (2004).
