TNI Commander Appoints Lieutenant General Bambang Trisnohadi as Chief of Territorial Staff
TNI Commander General Agus Subiyanto has appointed Lieutenant General Bambang Trisnohadi as Chief of Territorial Staff (Kaster) of the TNI. The position of Kaster was abolished from the Indonesian military more than two decades ago.
According to a written statement from the TNI, Commander Agus led the appointment ceremony in the Gatot Soebroto Hall at TNI Headquarters, Cilangkap, East Jakarta, on Thursday, 26 March 2026. In addition to the Kaster appointment, Agus also led the handover ceremony for the Commander of the III Western Regional Command, the Director General of TNI Auditors, and received a report on the promotion corps for TNI generals.
With Bambang Trisnohadi’s appointment as Kaster, his previous position as Commander of the III Western Regional Command was handed over to another officer. Bambang handed over his former position to Lieutenant General Lucky Avianto, who was previously the Regional Military Commander XXIV/Mandala Trikora.
The TNI Commander also appointed Major General Tugino as Director General of the TNI Legal Development Agency. Tugino previously served as Head of the High Military Audit Office II in Jakarta.
Additionally, the TNI Commander received a report on promotions for 57 high-ranking TNI officers. Those promoted include 47 Army generals, 9 Navy generals, and 1 Air Force general.
From the Army branch, among others, are the Jakarta Regional Military Commander (Organisational Validation) Lieutenant General Deddy Suryadi and Commander of the III Western Regional Command Lieutenant General Lucky Avianto. From the Navy branch, among others, are the Chief of Naval Doctrine, Education, and Training XI of the Naval Command Admiral Joko Andriyanto and Chief of Naval Doctrine, Education, and Training X Major General (Marine) Sugianto. From the Air Force branch, there is the Permanent Lecturer at the National Defence University Air Marshal Sigit Sasongko.
Through this appointment, the Kaster TNI position, which was abolished nearly 25 years ago, is now officially filled again. The Kaster TNI position was eliminated during the administration of President Abdurrahman Wahid, also known as Gus Dur, in 2001.
At that time, the Kaster TNI held by Lieutenant General Agus Widjojo was planned to be abolished in line with Agus’s upcoming appointment as Deputy Chairman of the MPR from the TNI/Polri faction. In addition to Agus Widjojo, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is recorded as having held the position.
Head of TNI Information Centre Major General Aulia Dwi Nasrullah stated that the reactivation of the Kaster TNI position is an adaptive effort to the dynamics of task challenges.
He explained that the Kaster official will assist the TNI Commander in formulating organisational policies. The Kaster TNI, he said, will also develop territorial functions, which is indeed one of the military’s main functions. “Especially in strengthening the unity of the TNI with the people and empowering defence areas,” he said in his statement on Saturday, 14 March 2026.