Pakistan appoints Asim Munir as first Chief of Defence Forces

Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir has became the Pakistan's first Chief of Defence Forces.The constitutional changes also provided for the creation of the National Strategic Command, headed by a four-star officer and tasked with overseeing the operational integration of Pakistan's strategic forces. The legislation puts Pakistan's Army, Navy and Air Force under a unified command headed by Munir and gives him extensive powers over military operations, senior officers and personnel matters, including the authority to retire, discharge or retain personnel and alter prescribed retirement limits.
Pakistan's National Assembly on Thursday passed two bills related to the military and nuclear command structure to streamline changes in the military hierarchy in the wake of last year's 27th constitutional amendment. The amendment introduced the office of Chief of Defence Forces by abolishing the office of the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee. The position of CDF is concurrently held by the Chief of Army Staff, Field Marshal Asim Munir.
The amendment also introduced the post of Commander of the National Strategic Command (CNSC), a four-star office that oversees the operational integration of Pakistan’s strategic forces. Last month, Gen Syed Aamer Raza was promoted from the rank of lieutenant general and appointed as the first CNSC.
The first bill was passed to enact the Defence Forces Act, 2026, while the second bill was passed to amend the National Command Authority Act, 2010. The bills had first been approved by the National Assembly by majority vote and later on by the Senate. Moments before, the federal cabinet endorsed the draft legislation during a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.