Tag: Army Chief

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-Top News Asia News PAKISTAN

Lt Gen Asim Munir is Pakistan’s New Army Chief

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has appointed former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) head Lt General Asim Munir as the new chief of army staff (COAS), reports Asian Lite News

Lieutenant General Asim Munir was on Thursday appointed as the new chief of army staff (COAS) of Pakistan, ending weeks of intense speculation and political tussle in the country.

“The Prime Minister of Pakistan Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif has decided to appoint Lt. Gen. Sahir Shamshad Mirza as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Lt. Gen. Syed Asim Munir as the Chief of the Army Staff using the constitutional authority,” Pakistan Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb tweeted.

Aurangzeb said that a summary of the same had been sent to Pakistan President Arif Alvi.

On Wednesday, the Pakistan government confirmed that it had received the summary from the Ministry of Defence with a “panel of names” for the appointment of the new COAS.

“The PM office has received the summary from the Ministry of Defence with a panel of names for the appointment of Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and Chief of the Army Staff. The Prime Minister will take a decision on the appointments as per the laid down procedure,” the Pakistan prime minister’s office said in a statement.

Gen Bajwa, 61, is slated to retire next week after a three-year extension.

General Qamar javed Bajwa

On Tuesday, Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said the summary had been forwarded to the PMO from the defence ministry. “The rest of the steps will be completed soon,” he tweeted.

Pakistan’s defence minister has warned opposition leader and former Prime Minister Imran Khan, saying that the coalition government will deal with him, after the completion of the appointment process of the new Army chief.

“The process will complete in two to three days. The excitement will end, after which we will deal with Imran Khan,” the Pakistan defence minister was quoted as saying by The Express Tribune.

He made these remarks on the floor of the Pakistan National Assembly, hinting at the formal announcement of the key appointment within the next three days.

This comes after the process to appoint the new army chief started on Monday as Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote a letter to the country’s Defence Ministry for a summary of the potential candidates. (ANI)

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Defence India News

Gen Pande appointed next Army Chief

He had been Commander-in-Chief of the Andaman & Nicobar Command and as the Eastern Army Commander at Kolkata before taking over as the Vice Chief of the Army Staff…reports Asian Lite News

Indian Army’s Vice Chief Lt Gen Manoj C. Pande was on Monday appointed as the next Chief of the Army Staff – the first engineer to hold the top post.

He succeed Gen M.M. Naravane on April 30, 2022.

Born on May 6, 1962, Lt General Pande was commissioned on December 24, 1982 in the Corps of Engineers (The Bombay Sappers), and during his long and distinguished service spanning over 39 years, has served in a variety of command, staff, and instructional appointments.

He has commanded an Engineer Brigade in the Western Theatre as part of Strike Corps, and an Infantry Brigade along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir. His other important command appointments include a Mountain Division in the high-altitude area of western Ladakh and a Corps deployed along the LAC and in the counter-insurgency operations area of the Eastern Command.

He had been Commander-in-Chief of the Andaman & Nicobar Command and as the Eastern Army Commander at Kolkata before taking over as the Vice Chief of the Army Staff.

An alumnus of National Defence Academy, he has also studied at Staff College, Camberley (UK), Army War College, Mhow and National Defence College, New Delhi.

3 service chiefs from 61st NDA batch

The three service chiefs of the Indian armed forces will be from the 61st batch of the National Defense Academy (NDA) at Khadakwasla, after the Army chief-designate Lt Gen Manoj C Pande takes over as the 29th Chief of Army Staff on April 30.

Indian Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal V.R. Chaudhari

Navy Chief Admiral Hari Kumar and Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari are also from the same NDA course, defence officials said.

While Lt Gen Pande is from the Lima squadron, the two other chiefs are from the Juliet squadron of NDA.

Officials said the three chiefs being course-mates would help in further improving the jointness among the three services and it would be of great importance when the three services are working towards the creation of integrated theatre commands.

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Africa News News World

Sudan Army Chief: Issues decree forming transitional Sovereign Council

General Commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces, Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan has issued a constitutional decree forming a transitional Sovereign Council, headed by himself…reports Asian Lite News

The decree stipulated naming Al-Burhan as Chairman of the Sovereign Council, and General Mohamed Hamdan Daqlu as Deputy Chairman.

The decree further named 11 members of the Sovereign Council, including General Sham-Eddin Kabashir, Gen. Yair Al-Atta, Gen. Ibrahim Jaber, Malik Agar, Al-Tahir Hajar, Al-Hadi Idris, Raja Nicola, Yousif Jad Kareem, Abul-Gasim Mohamed Ahmed, Abdul-Baqui Abdul-Ghader and Salma Abdul-Jabbar Musa, the report said.

The decree delayed the appointment of eastern Sudan representative in the Sovereign Council until relating consultations are completed, Xinhua news agency reported.

In the meantime, the Sudanese Professionals Association, one of the popular entities leading the protests in the street, declared rejection to the appointment of the sovereign council.

ALSO READ: Sudanese Army Chief voices commitment to democratic transition

“This is an unconstitutional measure. The Army Commander has no right to take this measure and we will resist it through our peaceful means,” the Association said in a statement.

Sudan has been suffering from a political crisis after Al-Burhan declared a state of emergency on October 25 and dissolved the Sovereign Council and government.

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-Top News India News

Army Chief Gen Naravane speaks to his Malaysian counterpart

Indian Army Chief M.M. Naravane (Photo: Bidesh Manna/IANS)

The eleventh Malaysia-India Defence Cooperation Meeting (MIDCOM) chaired by the Secretaries of the two Defence Ministries, was held in Kuala Lumpur on November 21, 2018…reports Asian Lite News.

Army Chief General MM Naravane on Thursday had a telephonic interaction with Chief of Malaysian Army, General Tai Sri Datuk Zamrose Bin Mohd Zain and exchanged views on enhancing bilateral defence cooperation.

A tweet by the Additional Directorate General of Public Information, IHQ of MoD (Army) said, “General MM Naravane #COAS had telephonic interaction with General Tan Sri Datuk Zamrose Bin Mohd Zain, Chief of Malaysian Army and exchanged views on enhancing bilateral defence cooperation between both Nations.”

India’s defence relations with Malaysia have gained momentum during recent years. A Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Cooperation signed in 1993 is the cornerstone of defence relations between the two countries.

The Malaysian Defence Minister had visited India last in April 2017. The Indian Defence Minister had visited Malaysia in November 2015.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited Malaysia at the invitation of Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak, Prime Minister of Malaysia on November 23, 2015 during which the two countries had jointly issued a statement on enhanced Malaysia-India Strategic Partnership.

Joint Indo-Malaysian military exercise commences at Kuala Lumpur (ANI)

The eleventh Malaysia-India Defence Cooperation Meeting (MIDCOM) chaired by the Secretaries of the two Defence Ministries, was held in Kuala Lumpur on November 21, 2018.

Regular Staff Talks between the services at apex level have been extremely successful. The 6th Army to Army Staff Talks were held in May 2017 in Kuala Lumpur.

The 8th Air Force to Air Force Staff Talks were held in Kuala Lumpur on February 14-16, 2018. The 7th Navy to Navy Staff Talks were held in July 2018. (India News Network)

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READ MORE-Army Chief meets Lankan President, discusses issues of mutual interests

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-Top News Afghanistan India News

Afghan Army Chief to visit India next week

A government delegation led by Abdullah and Taliban representatives are holding peace talks in Qatar’s Doha…reports Asian Lite News.

Amid the fierce battle between the government armed forces and Taliban, Afghanistan Army Chief will visit India for two days next week to interact with top security officials, including the Indian Army Chief General M.M. Naravane.

Afghanistan Army Chief General Wali Mohammad Ahmadzai will be in India from July 27 to July 29 during which he is going to meet top dignitaries here, including National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.

Top officials in the government remained quiet over the issue. However, sources said that the Afghanistan Army Chief might look for logistic support and military equipment. India has been training the Afghanistan cadets in military academies for a long time.

Further, the visit comes when Pakistan in collaboration with Taliban has started to target Indian assets in Afghanistan. India has invested over 3 billion US dollars in infrastructure projects, including roads, dams and the Parliament building, in Afghanistan.

Earlier this month, Afghan politician who leads the High Council for National Reconciliation (HCNR) Abdullah Abdullah made a visit to India. He is making efforts for peace despite the ongoing fighting between government forces and the Taliban.

A government delegation led by Abdullah and Taliban representatives are holding peace talks in Qatar’s Doha.

Afghan national army soldiers take part in an operation against Taliban militants in Kunduz city, Afghanistan. (Photo by Ajmal Kakar_Xinhua_IANS)

For India, the main concern remains the use of Taliban-controlled territory by Pakistan based terror groups. India is in touch with the Afghan government about the developing situation.

The fighting between the Afghan forces and Taliban has intensified in the last one month post the US forces withdrawal. Taliban has started expanding its influence in the war torn county after the US withdrawal.

Amid security concerns, India withdrew its staff from the Consulate in Kandahar on July 11.

ALSO READ-Today’s Taliban is Closer to India: Former Pak Security Czar

READ MORE-Amidst Taliban advance, India extends support to Afghanistan

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-Top News China India News

India monitoring PLA activities on border: Army Chief

Indian Army Chief M.M. Naravane (Photo: Bidesh Manna/IANS)

Indian Army Chief said that Indian troops are on high alert and deployments have not thinned after the disengagement in Pangong Lake, reports Asian Lite News

The chief of Indian Army, M.M. Naravane, said here on Friday that the troops are on high alert at Line of Actual Control (LAC), keeping a close watch on the activities of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.

The army chief also pointed that India wants the status quo ante of April 2020 to be restored.

Naravane stated that India has made it clear to China that de-escalation will only be considered once disengagement is completed to the mutual satisfaction of both sides.

ALSO READ: China builds villages, outposts inside Bhutan territory

He said that Indian troops are on high alert and deployments have not thinned after the disengagement in Pangong Lake.

The army chief maintained that China has deployed around 50,000 to 60,000 troops in Eastern Ladakh in immediate depth, so India has also made mirror deployments in depth.

Army Chief
Indian Army chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane reviews security arrangements in Valley.

Naravane also said that India is keeping an eye on the developments on the Chinese side.

He said India is currently concentrating on resolving the outstanding problems at other friction points like Hot Springs, Gogra and Depsang along the LAC.

He also pointed out that India’s stand in the disengagement agreement in the Pangong Lake area remained the same, i.e., the status quo ante of April 2020 must be restored.

The army chief also stated that trust levels between the two countries are low, but pointed out that the trust deficit should not hinder the negotiation process.

Indian Army uses drones, cameras to monitor Chinese troops pullback at Pangong Lake

The 12 rounds of military commander-level talks between India and China to resolve the border issue will take place soon. It has been delayed due to the surge in the number of Covid cases.

General Naravane recently reviewed the operational preparedness of the force along the borders with China in the Arunachal Pradesh region.

He went to Dimapur in Nagaland on May 20 on a two-day visit to review the operational readiness along the northern borders of Arunachal Pradesh, and the security situation in the hinterlands of the Northeast region.

India and China are engaged in a year-long standoff along the LAC. The confrontations began on the north bank of Pangong Lake, both in the waters and the bank, as Chinese incursions increased in early May last year.

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