Lt Gen Aamer Raza promoted to 4-star rank, appointed first Commander National Strategic Command

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has announced that Lieutenant General Aamer Raza, the chief of general staff of the Pakistan Army, has been promoted to the rank of a four-star general and appointed Commander National Strategic Command (CNSC), the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said on Friday.

According to the PMO, the premier congratulated the newly promoted general and wished him the best for “undertaking this important responsibility”.

The post was created under last year’s 27th Constitutional Amendment, which made significant changes to the military’s chain of command, to assume the nuclear manager role previously exercised by the Chai­rman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC), a post which was abolished.

The appointment, reappointment and extension of the CNSC are tied solely to the recommendation of the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF), a post that was also created under the amendment for a unified command structure across the armed forces.

Under the changes, the appointment, reappointment or extension of the CNSC or the “exercise of discretion by the appointing authority in this regard, shall not be called into question before any court on any ground whatsoever”.

Last year, Field Marshal Asim Munir, who also serves as the Chief of Army Staff, was appointed the country’s first CDF following the passage of the 27th Amendment.