British Defence Staff - US alongside the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and other Government Departments collectively serve the interests of Her Majesty’s Government in the USA.

The British Defence Staff in the United States is led by the Defence Attaché Major General Peter Gilchrist. The Defence Attaché is HMA’s senior adviser on defence issues, and as Head of the British Defence Staff in the United States (HBDS(US)) has responsibility over 385 military and civilian MOD personnel located both within the Embassy and in 34 states across the USA. The Defence Attaché is drawn rotationally from each of the 3 Services.

Patrick Turner, Minister Defence Material and Civil Secretary, is the senior Ministry of Defence Civil Servant in the United States. As Civil Secretary, he has responsibility for financial management governance of the BDS-US budget. As Minister Defence Materiel, he has overall responsibility for supporting all aspects of the UK/US defence equipment acquisition policy and process, including collaborative science and technology programmes, helping the UK and US Services develop harmonised operational requirements, liaising with industry on both sides of the Atlantic, placing contracts for US equipment for the UK Armed Forces and supporting the sale of UK equipment to the US Services.

Chief of Staff and Joint Staff
Colonel Mike Page Royal Marines is the Deputy Defence Attaché, Chief of Staff and Marine Attaché. In addition to his attaché duties, the Chief of Staff co-ordinates the business of the Defence staff, working closely with the Business Manager / Deputy Civil Secretary. The Chief of Staff also directs the activities of the Joint Staff.

The Joint Staff
The BDS-US Joint Staff provide support to the top-level management of the UK-USA defence relationship. As such, they provide politically aware military advice to a variety of customers, and act as desk officers for a broad portfolio of policy issues. The allocation of responsibilities to individual members of the Joint Staff varies according to workload at the direction of the Chief of Staff.

There are four members of the Joint Staff, one from each of the three UK Services, at Lt Col or equivalent rank, and one Civil Servant from the UK MOD. This ensures a balanced background and portfolio of operational experience across the staff.

Three of the Joint Staff currently work alongside members of the FCO Chancery Staff to form the Foreign and Security Policy Group. Within this group they contribute to diplomatic reporting from the Embassy, and assist in a variety of initiatives to promote UK foreign policy objectives. Much of this work involves interaction with US State Department and Department of Defense officials, particularly with the Pentagon Joint Staff.

Other tasks undertaken by the Joint Staff include support to high-level official visits, management of arrangements for information sharing between the USA and the UK, promotion of relations between British and American defence academic institutions and monitoring, in some cases in conjunction with embedded liaison officers, the activities of the US Combatant Commanders. Much of the Joint Staff’s work is undertaken in conjunction with the Chief of the Defence Staff’s Liaison Officer’s Team, which is resident in the Embassy.

British Naval Staff
The Naval Attaché, a RN Commodore, and his staff along with a breadth of Exchange and Liaison officers around the US act as the principal advisors on maritime matters between the UK MOD and the US Chief of Naval Operations, US Marine Corps and the US Coastguard, as well as representing the Royal Navy in the US.

British Army Staff
The Military Attaché, a Brigadier, is supported by a small Embassy based staff (the Land Team) and a wide network of Liaison and Exchange Officers.  He is CGS’ representative in the US, focusing on the land domain within the US Army and US Marine Corps.

Royal Air Force Staff
The Air Attaché, an Air Commodore, represents the Chief of the Air Staff in the USA. He develops and maintains close relationships on all air and space issues with the DoD and specifically HQ US Air Force.  He is assisted by a group of staff in Washington and a team of Liaison and Exchange officers throughout the US.

Defence Materiel
Responsibility for all US/UK defence equipment issues falls to the Counsellor (Defence Equipment). The staff focus on projects where an equipment solution has already been defined, promoting areas of expansion for UK industry.

Science and Technology
Led by the Counsellor (Defence Science & Technology) the team works closely with other BDS departments to be the acknowledged authority on UK/US nuclear and non-nuclear future equipment capability issues including S&T collaboration, concept demonstration, operational analysis and experimentation.

Defence Business Management
The team provide support to BDS - US , their families and the wider MOD community in the US.  Its functions include Resource and Performance Management, Personnel Management, Information, Business Services and Governance.