Thomas Starlinger

--- CONTENT ---
Thomas Starlinger (born 27). January 1963 in Gmunden is an Austrian officer and politician. From 3 June 2019 to 7 June 2019 In January 2020 he was Federal Minister for Defence.

Military career

Training and first uses
Starlinger joined the Austrian army in 1981 and completed his training as an officer at the Theresian Military Academy in Wiener Neustadt. From 1985 to 1993 he was in the then Landwehr StammRegiment 43 in Upper Austria training officer, company commandant as well as head of personnel and public relations.

He completed his first assignment abroad in 1987 as a telecommunications officer in the Austrian battalion of the UNDOF in Syria. Further assignments abroad led him to Iran in 1991 as construction manager and liaison officer of the Austrian field hospital under UNIIMOG, in 1993 as UN observer officer with the British contingent to Cyprus (UNFICYP) and in 1994 as UN observer officer to Tajikistan (UNMOT).

From 1995 to 1997 he worked as Head of Public Relations and Chief Teaching Officer for Political Education at the Army College of Non-Commissioned Officers in Enns.

Service as General Staff Officer
After graduation of 15. General Staff training course from 1997 to 2000, Starlinger was initially responsible for training and operational command in Carinthia for almost half a year. After that, he was deployed as Chief of Staff and Deputy Brigadier Commander at the 7th Jägerbrigade in Klagenfurt.

From 2003 to 2005, Starlinger was senior project officer in the European Union Military Staff and subsequently in the newly established European Defence Agency until 2007.

In December 2007, the Austrian Federal Minister for Defence appointed Starlinger as commander of the 7th Fighter Brigade with six battalions and a total of 3,200 soldiers.

From November 2008 to May 2009, Starlinger took command of the Multinational Task Force South (MNTF S) of the Kosovo protection force KFOR with 3,500 soldiers from Bulgaria, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Turkey.
Together with the German contingent leader, Brigadier General Harald Fugger, he intensified the cooperation of state and non-state organizations in the reconstruction of Kosovo during this time.

In December 2012, Starlinger took over the duties as Deputy Chief of Staff Supporting the Operational Command Operations Command (since July 2013 Multinational Command Operational Command) in Ulm, succeeding Brigadier Karl Pronhagl, to assume the position of Deputy Chief of Staff Operations in July 2013.

In 2017, Major General Starlinger, who is considered a supporter of a professional army, became adjutant to the newly elected Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen.

From June 2019 to January 2020, he was appointed Minister of Defence within the framework of the expert government.

In 2023, he succeeded Lieutenant General Franz