ISLAMABAD, May 20 – Pakistan’s Army Chief, General Asim Munir, will be promoted to the ceremonial rank of Field Marshal, the Prime Minister’s Office announced Tuesday May 20, 2025. This is the first such promotion in nearly six decades.
The move, approved by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s cabinet, follows Pakistan’s most serious military conflict with India in almost 30 years.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called the promotion a recognition of Munir’s “strategic brilliance and courageous leadership.” A security official clarified the Field Marshal title is symbolic and honors exceptional wartime leadership. Munir will remain the army chief.
This is the first time since 1965—when General Ayub Khan assumed the title himself—that a Pakistani general has been promoted to Field Marshal.
The cabinet also approved an extension for Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Babar Sidhu, though the new duration wasn’t disclosed.
General Asim Munir began his tenure in November 2022, with a legal amendment in 2023 extending his term to five years. “This is an honor for the armed forces and the nation,” Munir said in a statement.
