Angus Campbell (general)

General Angus John Campbell, is a retired senior officer in the Australian Army, who served as the Chief of the Defence Force from 6 July 2018 until 10 July 2024. He was previously posted as Commander Operation Sovereign Borders from September 2013 until he was appointed Chief of Army in May 2015.

Military career
Campbell attended St Gregory's College, Campbelltown before entering the Royal Military College, Duntroon in 1981, receiving a commission as an infantry lieutenant in 1984. Initially assigned to the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment as a platoon commander, he later passed selection for the Special Air Service Regiment, with which he served as troop and squadron commander. Campbell commanded the 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment in East Timor as part of the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET), for which was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 2003.

Campbell served as Chief of Staff to General Peter Cosgrove and later Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston during their respective tenures as Chief of the Defence Force. In 2005, he left the full-time army and assumed a senior civilian appointment as First Assistant Secretary in the Office of National Security within the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Campbell was later promoted to Deputy Secretary, and served as Deputy National Security Adviser for a period before returning to the army in 2010.

Campbell was promoted to the rank of major general and appointed as Commander Joint Task Force 633 in 2011, responsible for all Australian forces deployed in the Middle East, including Afghanistan. For his command in Afghanistan he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. He was appointed the Deputy Chief of Army in February 2012.

Campbell was promoted to lieutenant general on 19 September 2013 and appointed to oversee Operation Sovereign Borders, part of the Abbott government's immigration policy aimed at stopping maritime arrivals of asylum seekers to Australia.

In March 2015, Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced Campbell would be appointed Chief of Army from May of that year, taking over from the retiring Lieutenant General David Morrison.

On 16 April 2018, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced that Campbell would be promoted to general and succeed Air Chief Marshal Mark Binskin as Chief of the Defence Force. The change of command occurred on 6 July. In the meantime, one of Campbell's last acts as the Chief of Army was to order the removal of "death imagery" from patches and badges.

On 19 November 2020 the Brereton Report was publicly released following a four-year investigation into alleged Australian war crimes by special forces units whom were taking part in the War in Afghanistan between 2006 and 2016. On that same day Campbell announced at a press conference that the 2 Squadron, Special Air Service Regiment would be disbanded and struck from the army's order of battle. He also apologised for "any wrong doing by Australian soldiers" and said a "distorted culture" existed in the Australian Defence Force.

In June 2022, Campbell's tenure as Chief of the Defence Force was extended for a further two years.

In late November 2022, Campbell gave officers of Captain to Brigadier rank "28 days to prove their service in the Afghanistan war was distinguished". Up to 3,000 Australian Defence Force members are potentially facing having their medals revoked. At the time of the most serious allegations in 2012, Campbell was serving as the Commander Joint Task Force 633, for which he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. This has led to calls for Campbell to be stripped of his decoration due to findings of the Brereton Report and due to a perceived error in the original citation. "In the citation on his Distinguished Service Cross, he said he was given that award for 'distinguished command and leadership in action' – the key phrase is 'in action' and what that means is he was serving in action against the enemy in combat in Afghanistan."

In July 2024, Campbell will be succeeded by Vice Admiral David Johnston as the Chief of the Defence Force upon retirement.

On 3 July 2024, a senate inquiry was launched to look into the awarding criteria of defence honours and awards, and more specifically the Distinguished Service Cross awarded to Campbell in 2012.

Childhood and personal life
Campbell lived in Papua New Guinea as a child.

He is married to Stephanie Copus-Campbell, a former AusAID official and the current Australian Ambassador for Gender Equality. She is the lead advocate for Australia's work on gender equality across all aspects of foreign policy. They have two adult children.