Lieutenant General Rossa Mulcahy
Chief of Staff of the Irish Defence Forces
Lieutenant General Rossa Mulcahy is a professional communications officer with over 39 years' experience in a variety of roles across the Defence Forces as well as deployments with the United Nations and NATO. He took up his appointment as Chief of Staff (CHOD) on 01 June 2025 having previously served as Assistant Chief of Staff since October 2021.
Lieutenant General Mulcahy is the principal military advisor to the Minister of Defence and the Irish Government and serves on key strategic boards at the State policy level. He has been a clear and decisive communicator, a driver of change and an innovation champion throughout his career in the Defence Forces. As Assistant Chief of Staff, Rossa was responsible for a range of organisational level issues including; Organisation Transformation, Capability Development, Innovation, Risk Management, Corporate Governance, and Industrial Relations, Doctrine and Cultural Transformation.
Lieutenant General Mulcahy served as Director of Strategic Planning Branch from Feb 2020, where he was responsible for Strategy Development, Defence Policy Programme Implementation, Defence Forces' Annual Plans, and International Security and Defence Policy coordination. From 2019 he was the Director of Communications and Information Services, with cyber being one of his areas of responsibility. As Lieutenant Colonel he held appointments in the Joint Command and Staff School and the Defence Forces' Management Information Framework Section.
Lieutenant General Mulcahy educational qualifications include a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Galway, a Higher Diploma in Information Technology from Maynooth University, a Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems from University College Dublin (UCD), a Master of Arts degree in Leadership Management and Defence Studies from Maynooth University and most recently a Professional Diploma in Strategy Development and Innovation from the Smurfit Business School, UCD. He is a graduate of the Defence Forces' Senior Command & Staff Course (2008) and the US Army Command and General Staff College (2011). His overseas experience includes three deployments to Lebanon with UNIFIL, two years on deployment to Syria and Lebanon with UNTSO and a deployment as Irish National Senior and Deputy KLE Branch at NATO's Resolute Support mission, in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Rossa is married to Lorna and they have two daughters, Caoimhe and Laoise.
Designated Public Official under the Regulation of Lobbying Act 2015 – see www.lobbying.ie
