Editing Tatmadaw (section)

===Before 1988===
Overall command of the Tatmadaw ([[armed forces]]) rested with the country's highest-ranking military officer, a [[general]], who acted concurrently as [[defence minister|Defence Minister]] and [[Chief of staff (military)|Chief of Staff]] of Defence Services. He thus exercised supreme operational control over all three services, under the direction of the [[President (government title)|President]], State Council and Council of Ministers. There was also a National Security Council which acted in advisory capacity. The Defence Minister cum Chief-of-Staff of Defence Services exercised day-to-day control of the armed forces and assisted by three Vice-Chiefs of Staff, one each for the [[army]], [[navy]] and [[air force]]. These officers also acted as Deputy Ministers of Defence and commanders of their respective Services. They were all based at [[Ministry of Defence (Burma)|Ministry of Defence]] ({{lang|my|Kakweyay Wungyi Htana}}) in [[Rangoon]]/[[Yangon]]. It served as a government ministry as well as joint military operations headquarters.<ref>Andrew Selth: Transforming the Tatmadaw</ref>

The Joint Staff within the Ministry of Defence consisted of three major branches, one each for Army, Navy and Air Force, along with a number of independent departments. The Army Office had three major departments; the General (G) Staff to oversee operations, the [[Adjutant General]]'s (A) Staff administration and the [[Quartermaster General]]'s (Q) Staff to handle logistics. The [[General Staff]] consisted two Bureaus of Special Operations (BSO), which were created in April 1978 and June 1979 respectively.<ref name="Maung Aung Myoe p.26">Maung Aung Myoe: Building the Tatmadaw, p.26</ref>

These BSO are similar to "Army Groups" in Western armies, high level staff units formed to manage different theatres of military operations. They were responsible for the overall direction and co-ordination of the Regional Military Commands (RMC) with BSO-1 covering Northern Command (NC), North Eastern Command (NEC), North Western Command (NWC), Western Command (WC) and Eastern Command (EC). BSO-2 responsible for South Eastern Command (SEC), South Western Command (SWC), Western Command (WC) and Central Command (CC).<ref name="Maung Aung Myoe p.26"/>

The Army's elite mobile [[Light Infantry]] Divisions (LID) were managed separately under a staff [[colonel]]. Under G Staff, there were also a number of directorates which corresponded to the Army's functional corps, such as Intelligence, Signals, Training, Armour and Artillery. The A Staff was responsible for the Adjutant General, Directorate of Medical Services and the [[Provost Marshal]]'s Office. The Q Staff included the Directorates of Supply and Transport, Ordnance Services, Electrical and Mechanical Engineering, and Military Engineers.

The Navy and Air Force Offices within the Ministry were headed by the Vice Chiefs of Staff for those Services. Each was supported by a staff officer at full [[colonel]] level. All these officers were responsible for the overall management of the various naval and air bases around the country, and the broader administrative functions such as recruitment and training.

Operational Command in the field was exercised through a framework of Regional Military Commands (RMC), the boundaries of which corresponded with the country's Seven States and Seven Divisions.<ref>See order of battle for further details</ref> The Regional Military Commanders, all senior army officers, usually of [[Brigadier General]] rank, were responsible for the conduct of military operations in their respective RMC areas. Depending on the size of RMC and its operational requirements, Regional Military Commanders have at their disposal 10 or more infantry battalions ({{lang|my|Kha La Ya}}).