the chief of the general staff is appointed directly by the president of kyrgyzstan, who is also commander in chief of the country's military. he/she holds the rank of major general ("генерал майор"). the general staff is the chief organizing and executive body in the armed force responsible for maintaining its combat readiness. it is higher in precedence to the state committee for defense affairs, which is the equivalent to kyrgyzstan's defense ministry. in february 2014, the general staff was expanded to have complete control and authority over the entire military, with the state defense committee playing a smaller, sometimes ceremonial role.