Editing Armed Forces of Ecuador (section)

==Command structure==
*'''The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces''' (''Comandante en Jefe de las Fuerzas Armadas'') is the [[Rafael Correa|President of the Republic]]. He exercises the political leadership of security and national defence and counts on the advice of the National Security Council.
*'''The National Security Council''' (''El Consejo de Seguridad Nacional'') or N.S.C. is the superior body responsible for the [[National security|national defence]], in charge of issuing the strategic concept of [[national security]], which in turn constitutes the essential instrument to start the planning and decision-making process. It is chaired by the [[Rafael Correa|President of the Republic]], which is also the [[Commander-in-Chief]] of the [[Armed Forces]]. It includes the Presidents of the [[National Congress of Ecuador|National Congress]] and the [[Supreme court|Supreme Court of Justice]]; the ministers in charge of [[National security|National Defence]], [[Forms of government|Government]] and [[Police]], [[International relations|Foreign Affairs]], and [[Economy|Economy and Finance]]; the Chief of the Joint Command, and the Chiefs of the three branches of the [[Armed Forces]]. It monitors the fulfillment of the defence policies and the strategic plans elaborated by the Joint Command of the [[Armed Forces]], submitted by the [[National security|Ministry of National Defence]]. The N.S.C. constitutes the highest ranking monitoring and crisis management body.
*'''The Ministry of Defense''' (''Ministerio de la Defensa National''), is the administrative body of the national defence. The Coordinating Minister of Internal and External Security accords the policies and actions that will be adopted by the following institutions as regards internal and external security: the [[Forms of government|Ministry of Government]] and [[Police]], [[International relations|the Ministry of Foreign Affairs]], the Ministry of Defence, and the Secretariat General for the [[Public administration]].
*'''The Joint Armed Forces Command''' (''El Comando Conjunto de las Fuerzas Armadas''), is the highest planning, preparation and strategic body of [[military]] operations. It advises on national defence and is conformed by the Chief of the Joint Command of the [[Armed Forces]] and the [[Commander]]s of all three branches of the Ecuadorian [[Armed Forces]]: The [[Ecuadorian Army|Army]], [[Ecuadorian Navy|Navy]] and the [[Ecuadorian Air Force|Air Force]].