Who is Aamer Raza? Pakistan promotes Lt Gen to four-star rank, becomes most powerful figure after Asim Munir, will oversee…

Almost a year after Pakistan introduced major changes to its Constitution and strengthened the powers of the military leadership, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday promoted Lt Gen Aamer Raza to the rank of four-star general and appointed him as the country’s first Commander of National Strategic Command (CNSC). The newly created post will oversee Pakistan’s strategic and nuclear assets.

General Raza is a graduate of the Command and Staff College, Quetta, and the National Defence University, Islamabad. He earlier served as Commander of IV Corps, Lahore, and was appointed to the position shortly after the May 9, 2023 unrest in Pakistan following the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, according to reports.

He has also served as the Pakistan Army’s Chief of General Staff and has been awarded the Hilal-i-Imtiaz (Military) and Sitara-i-Basalat.

How has Pakistan changed its military command structure?

With Aamer Raza’s appointment, Pakistan has completed its new strategic command framework. The CNSC will now handle nuclear command responsibilities that were earlier managed by the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC).

The office of CJCSC, which coordinated between Pakistan’s army, navy and air force since its creation after the 1971 war, was abolished following the 27th Constitutional Amendment.

The reforms created the position of Chief of Defence Forces (CDF), with Pakistan Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir becoming the country’s first officer to hold both the CDF and Army Chief positions simultaneously.

Asim Munir’s role

The restructuring has concentrated greater authority within Pakistan’s military leadership. Under the amended framework, the CNSC chief is appointed by the Prime Minister only on the recommendation of the CDF.

The changes followed the retirement of General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, Pakistan’s last Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, in November 2025, after which the responsibilities of the post were transferred to the new command structure.

The 27th Constitutional Amendment also protects CNSC-related appointments, including extensions and reappointments, from judicial review.