# Military Commandant's Offices Command

The Military Commandant's Offices Command (Lithuanian: Karo komendantūrų valdyba) is a territorial security-oriented formation in the Lithuanian Armed Forces, responsible for ensuring military order, security, and defense of critical infrastructure in the rear. It oversees the Military Commandant’s Offices, which perform tasks such as facility protection, communication security, counter-sabotage operations, and maintaining order in designated areas.
The command also manages the mobilization process and supports national defense efforts through its structured territorial presence.

## History
### Interwar Period

The position of military commandant in the Lithuanian Armed Forces was established at the very beginning of their formation in 1918. Military commandant offices held considerable authority in Lithuania during the interwar period, particularly during martial law. They functioned as both gendarmerie and military police.

### Restoration of Independence

Since 1990, military commandant offices have operated in Lithuania under the Department of National Defense. Their responsibilities included overseeing the infrastructure of national defense units, providing information about the service and daily life of soldiers, recruiting young people into the armed forces, patrolling assigned territories, and carrying out guard duties at key facilities. Additionally, one of their most important tasks was assisting in the withdrawal of Russian troops from Lithuanian territory.
Within the commandant offices, commandant units were formed, where the first conscripts of the restored Lithuanian army underwent mandatory service. The commandant offices, as local administrative units, were dissolved in January 1993. On September 11, 1998, the Separate Commandant Battalion was reorganized into the Grand Duke Gediminas Staff Battalion.

### Modern Era

In 2019, military commandant offices were reinstated in Lithuania as wartime decentralized structures, each operating without unified command. They were organized on a territorial basis and staffed with a commandant (professional), his deputy (military volunteer), and personnel from the Conscription and recruitment service, along with reservists.
In 2024, the then Minister of National Defense, Laurynas Kasčiūnas, ordered the reform of the military commandant system in peacetime, ensuring that it was staffed by professional soldiers. A new form of service, similar to the Volunteer Forces, was introduced, with more flexible requirements concerning service days, health, and appearance standards for soldiers. The training of reserve soldiers was assigned to the National Defense Volunteer Forces, with Colonel Danas Mockūnas appointed as the head of project.
On May 1, 2024, registration for volunteers in the newly structured military commandant offices opened. During the first registration period, from May 1 to August 31, 2024, 6,000 individuals signed up. Despite initial plans to temporarily close the registration, it was not halted. On November 13, 2024, the first soldiers of the military commandant offices took their oath.
On March 1, 2025, the Military Commandant Offices Command was established.

## Structure

The Military Commandant Offices Command consists of a headquarters and six regional military commandant offices located in Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipėda, Šiauliai, Panevėžys, and Alytus. Each regional military commandant office is responsible for its city and district. Within the jurisdiction of the regional offices, municipal military commandant offices are subordinate to them. In municipalities with fewer than 10,000 residents, municipal military commandant offices are not established. Instead, they are overseen by the commandant office of a neighboring municipality. Only a deputy commandant and a infantry platoon are assigned to these smaller municipalities. Regional commandant offices are responsible for managing between 2 and 6 battalions, while municipal offices are tasked with managing a company.
Military Commandant's Offices Command, in Vilnius