Joseph F.H. Peterson is vice president of Special Operations Forces/Army Programs for Raytheon Missile Systems in Tucson, Ariz. In this position, he coordinates broad advocacy across the enterprise, businesses and product lines to ensure alignment and growth within all Army-related efforts. Before joining Raytheon, Peterson served in the U.S. Army, retiring as a lieutenant general. His service included command assignments in armored and cavalry units through division command culminating his military career as deputy commanding general, U.S. Army FORCES Command. Peterson was the first U.S. Army lieutenant general (three-star) of Hawaiian ancestry.
Lieutenant General Joseph F. was the Deputy Commanding General, United States Army Forces Command.
Born and raised in Hawaii, Lieutenant General Peterson attended Saint Louis School in Honolulu and graduated from Santa Clara University in 1972 where he received his commission as an armor officer. Lieutenant General Peterson has served in command and staff positions from platoon to the general officer level. His service tours included assignments in the continental United States, Republic of Korea, Germany, and Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Selected for Brigadier General in 1998, his first position as a general officer was Deputy Chief of Staff for Resource Management, United States Army Training and Doctrine Command, Fort Monroe, Virginia. Lieutenant General Peterson was then assigned as Assistant Division Commander and later Commanding General, 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized), Fort Stewart, Georgia, and subsequently as Commanding General, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas. At the beginning of the current war, Lieutenant General Peterson served as Vice Director for Operations, The Joint Staff, Pentagon where all the Joint Staff’s planning, policies, intelligence, manpower, communications and logistics functions are translated into action. Lieutenant General Peterson was responsible for moving military forces, conducting detailed operational briefings to the national leadership and serving as the operational link between the warfighting commanders, the Secretary of Defense, and the President of the United States.
During Operation Iraqi Freedom, Lieutenant General Peterson was assigned as Commanding General, Civilian Police Assistance Training Team, Multi-National Security Transition Command-Iraq, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Iraq. He was responsible for the program development, course composition and content, planning, resourcing and implementation of training, infrastructure growth, and equipping of 200,000 Iraqi Civil Security Forces. In addition, he served as the personal advisor to two Iraqi Ministers of Interior where he was directly responsible for developing ministerial capacity.
Lieutenant General Peterson earned a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Santa Clara University and a Master of Business Administration from Chaminade University, Hawaii. He also attended a variety of military schools including the Armor Officer Advanced Course, the Army Command and General Staff College, and the Army War College.
His military awards and decorations include the Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit (with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters), Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Bronze Star, Meritorious service Medal (with 4 Oak Leaf Clusters), Army Commendation Medal (with Oak Leaf Cluster), Joint Service Achievement Medal, Army Achievement Medal (with Oak Leaf Cluster), Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge, Army Staff Identification Badge, and Combat Action Badge.