Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir was on Thursday appointed Pakistan’s first Chief of Defense Forces (CDF) after President Asif Ali Zardari approved the summary recommending the appointment.
A press release from the presidency said that the president also approved the two-year extension in the tenure of Air Chief Marshal (ACM) Zaheer Ahmed Babar Sidhu and extended his best wishes to both military commanders for their upcoming tenures.
He CDF positioncreated under the 27th Constitutional Amendment, will replace the now abolished position of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC), which formally term on November 27. It would be a dual-purpose position combined with the position of army chief.
Following the appointment of COAS as CDF, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif conveyed his best wishes to Field Marshal Munir.
According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office, the prime minister said that the appointment of the chief of the Defense Forces is in line with the needs of modern and contemporary warfare and will further strengthen the country’s defense.
“Under the leadership of Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, our gallant armed forces inflicted a humiliating defeat on the enemy,” the statement quoted the Prime Minister as saying.
The prime minister also congratulated the Chief of the Air Staff, Zaheer Ahmed Babar Sidhu, on the two-year extension of his tenure and extended his best wishes to him.
The statement further stated that under the leadership of the Field Marshal, “Pakistan achieved remarkable success in ‘Marka-i-Haq’, which earned Pakistan respect and recognition across the world.”
“Under the leadership of Zaheer Ahmed Babar Sidhu, Pakistan Air Force destroyed enemy fighter jets demonstrating outstanding professional capabilities in the “Battle of Truth” and asserted its dominance over the enemy,” the prime minister said.
“Together we will make the country’s defense impregnable,” the prime minister added.
PM sends summary to president
Earlier in the afternoon, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif sent a summary to President Zardari recommending the appointment of COAS Field Marshal Munir as CDF.
The prime minister approved the summary for the appointment of Field Marshal Munir “as chief of the army staff and chief of the defense forces”, and then forwarded it to the President’s Chamber, according to a press release from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
Field Marshal Munir’s appointment to both positions is for a period of five years, the statement said.
Prime Minister Shehbaz also approved a two-year extension in the tenure of Air Chief Marshal (ACM) Zaheer Ahmed Babar Sidhu, which will come into effect once his current five-year tenure ends in March 2026, the PMO added.
ACM Sidhu was appointed chief of the air staff in March 2021 and was granted a one-year extension in 2024.
Officials and observers expected the new notification to coincide with the abolition of the CJCSC post on November 27.
On Sunday, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said the notification for the appointment of the CDF would be issued “in due course” and urged people to refrain from speculation in this regard.
The next day, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said the government would issue the notification in the coming days but was already “taking over the position in all respects.”
Tarar had linked the delay to Prime Minister Shehbaz not being in the country and explained that notifying the new CDF is the job of the Defense Ministry and that they have to coordinate with the PMO.
Field Marshal Munir, commissioned through the Mangla Officer Training School in the Border Force Regiment, was promoted to the three-star rank in September 2018 and assumed office two months later, with his four-year tenure ending on November 27, 2022.
He served as chief of Military Intelligence in 2017 and briefly as chief of Inter-Services Intelligence in 2018, before being replaced eight months later by then Prime Minister Imran Khan.
He later commanded the Gujranwala Corps for two years before becoming Quartermaster General of the Headquarters. he has been service as head of the army from November 2022.
5-year tenure reset
In the wake of the 27th Amendment, the ruling coalition made certain changes in the Pakistan Army Act 1952 (PAA), restoring Field Marshal Munir’s tenure as COAS upon his appointment as CDF.
Subsection (i) of Article 8A of the PAA now states that “for the first appointment of the chief of the army staff, simultaneously the chief of the defense forces […]The term of office under this article shall begin from the date of notification of said position.”
It explains that after the issuance of the notification for the first COAS-plus-CDF, “the current term of office of the current Chief of the Army Staff will be deemed to be restarted from the date of such notification.”
As per sub-section (iii) of Article 8A, the “terms and conditions” of the COAS concurrently with the CDF shall be determined by the President in consultation with the Prime Minister.
Field Marshal Munir was appointed COAS on 29 November 2022, becoming the 17th army chief to take command of the Pakistan Army.
In November 2024, the government introduced changes to the army, air force and navy laws, extending the tenure of the three service chiefs from three to five years, keeping the tenure of the CJCSC unchanged at three years. The same amendments allowed service chiefs to be re-elected and/or for their terms to be extended for up to five years, instead of up to three years.
Therefore, in line with the restructuring under the 27th Amendment, the recent changes to the PAA allow the president, on the advice of the prime minister, to reappoint the COAS-plus-CDF for another five years, or extend his term up to five years, creating legal space for him to retain his position until December 2035.
Future appointments
The government quickly pushed the 27th Amendment through parliament last month, but the setback in notification complicated the transition to the restructured higher defense framework, which military planners had hoped would be seamless.
The appointment of the commander of the National Strategic Command (NSC), a new four-star position created to assume the nuclear manager role previously held by the CJCSC, remains pending decision.
Officials believe that this appointment will be made only after the CDF notification is issued.
The commander of the NSC will be appointed by the prime minister on the recommendation of the COAS and will be “at the same time chief of the defense forces”, according to Article 243 of the Constitution, now amended.
Meanwhile, the National Command Authority Law, which concerns the command and control of strategic assets, still requires amendments to reflect the abolition of the CJCSC and the emergence of the CDF commander and the NSC under Article 243.
The changes are expected to be complex, particularly regarding the location of the new posts in relation to the Pakistan Air Force and Navy chiefs and whether the air force and navy chiefs will retain representation in the NCA once their strategic commands are subsumed under a unified NSC commander.
Work is being done on a new organizational chart: Minister of Justice
Shortly before the summary was sent to the Presidency, Justice Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, in a press conference, said that the Defense Ministry was working on a new organizational chart for the CDF.
He also dispelled any notion of differences over the notification, saying the organizational chart was shared with the Prime Minister’s Office a day earlier.
Tarar said there was no ambiguity about changes in military laws following the passage of the 27th Constitutional Amendment.
