Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif recently appointed Gen Asim Munir as the new Chief of Army Staff (COAS) formally ending Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa’s six year long term. The incoming COAS has held key military positions, most prominent of which were his tenures as Director General Military Intelligence (DG MI) and Director General Inter Service Intelligence (DG ISI). Due it its history of military coups and complex civil-military relations, there is significant hype around the appointment of military chief in Pakistan. However, Gen. Asim will have a lot on his plate as he takes the reigns.

Pakistan’s successive army chiefs have pursued active military diplomacy in the last two decades. At times, military chiefs have served as bridges between sitting governments in Islamabad and Washington. This revised role has given more importance to the Army chief’s office. Another reason for the added hype this time around was the controversial tenure of Ex. COAS Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa. Having developed differences with two successive governments and being publically blamed for facilitating ‘regime change conspiracies’ by two most prominent political leaders, Nawaz Sharif and Imran Khan, the Bajwa era left behind plethora of challenges for the new military commander Gen. Asim Munir.

Gen. Asim takes charge amid continued political and economic turmoil in Pakistan. Since former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s removal from power in a vote of no-confidence earlier this year, Khan has hinted the military of having colluded with the U.S. government to remove him from power. Owing to his wide popular support, Imran Khan has been organizing mass political gatherings, protests, and marches to pressurize the government to hold early general elections and to influence the appointment of COAS. The foremost challenge for Gen. Asim will be to restore Pakistan Army’s apolitical image amid the current political chaos. Secondly, there has been great furore over the gruesome killing of Pakistan’s renowned journalist Arshid Sharif in Kenya, for which Pakistan’s spy agency, the ISI has been openly accused. This poses another complex challenge for the new COAS. The restoration of the lost prestige of the Pakistan Armed Forces will undoubtedly be Gen. Asim’s top priority.

The post US withdrawal situation and the interim Taliban government beyond Pakistan’s western frontiers is another point of concern for the new COAS. Recently, there have been skirmishes near the Chaman border between Pakistani and Afghan border forces resulting in loss of lives on both sides. Moreover, Islamabad has been pressing Kabul for action against the Afghanistan based leaders of the outlawed Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and also to mediate a dialogue between the State of Pakistan and TTP. Failure of these negotiations would mean more law and order issues, military deployment and operations, and more turbulence in the erstwhile FATA, KP, and Baluchistan. This key security concern would require some decision-making, and poses a grave challenge for the new military leadership of the Country.

India has always been the top national security concern for Pakistan since its inception. Gen. Asim Munir will soon be announcing his approach for the eastern neighbour. His approach, unlike his predecessor’s, is anticipated to be less conciliatory and more aggressive. The Imran Khan led PTI government adopted an aggressive verbal approach towards India, comparing the hardline right leaning Modi led government in Delhi with Nazism and fascism of the 1930s Germany. There was not much space left for reconciliation after India’s harsh unilateral moves to strip off IIOJK’s special constitutional status. Civil military relations experts have described Gen. Asim as strict on India, and believe that the new COAS, unlike Gen. Bajwa, might undo ceasefires at LOC and also adopt a new approach on Sino-India border conflict to keep the BJP led aggressive India on the back foot. Nevertheless, Gen. Asim’s response to India greatly depends on the security situation at Pakistan’s western border. Military establishment cannot afford to open two fronts at the same time. If negotiations with the TTP fail, which it seems they will, then Gen. Asim too is likely to continue with Bajwa-like soft approach towards India.

Gen. Asim Munir took charge as the 17^th COAS during times of great geopolitical tensions and realignments. Like rest of the world, Pakistan too has been greatly impacted by the ongoing Russia-Ukraine War.  Moreover, Pakistan’s deteriorating ties with the US, growing Indo-US strategic partnership, and the ever rising US-China rivalry, pose grave diplomatic challenges. The Pakistan armed forces require unhindered supply of arms for which cooperation with all the global powers such as the US, China, and Russia is pivotal. Above all, Pakistan’s growing multipronged alliance with China is not being welcomed in Washington and Delhi. As far as the US is concerned, Pakistan needs to adopt a balanced approach, that does not upset Pakistan’s all weather ally China. To achieve this feat, Gen. Asim Munir’s military diplomacy approach stands of great importance.

Given the current scenario, Gen. Asim would rightly be tilted on solving domestic issues first. All other goals would be achievable if disorder at home is dealt with. The revival of the image of armed forces stands of vital importance as it directly impacts morale of the soldiers. The entire trust deficit between civil and military leaderships needs to be addressed amicably, and the military leadership must tone down its politicized narratives that were developed in the last six years. Indeed, Pakistan’s success lies in military’s prudent role in the strengthening of democratic institutions.