Michael Norman Rouleau
Lieutenant-General Michael Rouleau
Born (1967-07-04) July 4, 1967
AllegianceCanada Canada
Service/branchCanadian SOF Command
Years of service1985–1999
2002–2022
Rank Lieutenant-General
Commands heldStrategic Advisor to the Chief of Defence Staff
Vice Chief of the Defence Staff
Joint Operations Command
Battles/warsWar in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Bosnian War
AwardsCommander of the Order of Military Merit
Meritorious Service Cross
Canadian Forces' Decoration
Governor General’s Commendation

Michael Norman Rouleau CMM MSC CD[1][2] (born July 4, 1967)[3] is a Canadian Forces officer serving as a lieutenant-general in the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command. He was the vice chief of the Defence Staff from July 15, 2020, until June 14, 2021.[4]

Education

Rouleau obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Manitoba. He would later graduate from the Royal Military College of Canada with a Masters in Defence Studies and a Master of Arts Degree in Security, Management, and Defence Policy.[5]

Military career

Rouleau joined the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) in 1985 as an artillery officer.[6]

In 1994 he became a Special Operation Assaulter with Joint Task Force 2 (JTF2)[5]

In 1999, he retired from the CAF and joined the ranks of the Ottawa Carleton Regional Police Service as an emergency response officer.[6] However, he re-enrolled in the CAF in 2002 following the events of the September 11 attacks against the United States.[6]

Rouleau was appointed Commander of the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command in February 2014.[7] He was Commander of the Canadian Joint Operations Command from June 2018 to March 2020 before being replaced by Lieutenant-General Christopher J. Coates.[6][8]

In July 2020, Rouleau was named Vice Chief of the Defence Staff. In March 2021, Frances J. Allen was announced as his successor and he was named a strategic advisor to the chief of the Defence Staff on future capabilities, pending Allen's completion of service as Canada's Representative to the NATO Military Committee.[9] He resigned prematurely from the role on June 14, 2021, after controversy over a golf game he played with former Chief of the Defence Staff Jonathan Vance during an investigation into the latter for sexual misconduct.[10] As Vice Chief of the Defence Staff, Rouleau was the immediate superior to the Provost Marshal in charge of the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service.

He retired in September 2022.

Honours and decorations

Rouleau has received the following orders and decorations during his military career:



RibbonDescriptionNotes
Order of Military Merit (CMM)
  • Appointed Commander (CMM) on 29 June 2018[11]
  • Appointed Officer (OMM) on 7 November 2014[11]
Meritorious Service Cross (MSC)
South-West Asia Service Medal
  • with AFGHANISTAN Clasp and Rotation bar
Special Service Medal
  • with NATO-OTAN Clasp
Canadian Peacekeeping Service Medal
UNPROFOR
NATO Medal for the former Yugoslavia
  • with FORMER YUGOSLAVIA clasp
European Community Monitor Mission Medal (Yugoslavia)
Canadian Forces' Decoration (CD)
  • with two Clasp for 32 years of services

References

  1. ↑ General, Office of the Secretary to the Governor (2018-06-27). "Order of Military Merit Investiture Ceremony". The Governor General of Canada. Retrieved 2021-02-25.
  2. ↑ General, Office of the Secretary to the Governor. "Major-General Michael Norman Rouleau". The Governor General of Canada. Retrieved 2021-02-25.
  3. ↑ Major-General Mike Rouleau
  4. ↑ Lieutenant-General Rouleau assumes responsibilities of the Vice Chief of the Defence Staff
  5. 1 2 Defence, National (2013-04-23). "Lieutenant-General M. N. Rouleau, CMM, MSC, CD". aem. Retrieved 2021-02-25.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Defence, National (2018-06-13). "New Commander for Canadian Joint Operations Command". gcnws. Retrieved 2019-05-02.
  7. ↑ "Michael Rouleau, Canadian Special Forces Commander, Fined $2,000 After Guilty Plea". HuffPost Canada. 2016-10-11. Retrieved 2019-05-02.
  8. ↑ Defence, National (2020-03-16). "Chief of the Defence Staff announces Lieutenant-General Mike Rouleau as the new Vice Chief of the Defence Staff as part of the 2020 Canadian Armed Forces General and Flag Officer senior appointments, promotions, and retirements". gcnws. Retrieved 2020-07-19.
  9. ↑ Stephenson, Mercedes; Cossette, Marc-André; Connolly, Amanda (March 8, 2021). "Canada getting first female vice chief of defence staff after military shake-up". Global News. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  10. ↑ "Canadian military's second-in-command resigns role after golfing with Vance - National | Globalnews.ca".
  11. 1 2 "Order of Military Merit List". The Governor General of Canada.
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