Pakistan Parliament Restructures Military and Nuclear Command Hierarchy

The National Assembly and Senate of Pakistan passed the Defence Forces Act 2026 and the National Command Authority (Amendment) Bill on August 20, 2026. This legislation implements the 27th Constitutional Amendment, which restructured the country's defence and judicial architecture by abolishing the position of Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee.

Field Marshal Asim Munir, who remains the Chief of Army Staff, has become the first Chief of Defence Forces (CDF). The new legal framework establishes the CDF as the principal military advisor to the prime minister with operational command and control over the armed forces, including authority over the retirement, discharge, and retention of military personnel. The CDF is also integrated into the National Command Authority, the body overseeing Pakistan's strategic and nuclear command.

As part of the restructuring, the government established the four-star office of Commander of the National Strategic Command, appointing General Syed Aamer Raza to the role to oversee the operational integration of strategic forces. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chaired the federal cabinet meeting that initially approved the draft legislation.

While the bills passed by majority vote in both houses—with the National Command Authority bill passing the Senate unanimously—the process faced opposition. Lawmakers from the PTI staged a walkout in the National Assembly after Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan was denied the opportunity to speak. The legislation now awaits presidential assent to become law.