Parliament approves key defence bills about new military command structure

The first legislation seeks to enact the Defence Forces Act, 2026, while the second amends the National Command Authority Act, 2010.

Both bills were first approved by the National Assembly and subsequently passed by the Senate.

Earlier, the federal cabinet had approved the draft legislation during a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The Defence Forces legislation establishes the legal and administrative framework for the office of the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and the CDF Headquarters. The cabinet also approved amendments to the National Command Authority Act.

The legislation gives effect to changes introduced through the 27th Constitutional Amendment, passed by parliament in November last year, which brought major changes to the country’s judicial and military command structures.

Under the constitutional changes, the office of the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee was abolished and replaced by the newly created position of Chief of Defence Forces.

Field Marshal Asim Munir, who is also the Chief of Army Staff, subsequently became Pakistan’s first Chief of Defence Forces.

The constitutional amendment also provided for the creation of the National Strategic Command, headed by a four-star officer and tasked with overseeing the operational integration of Pakistan’s strategic forces.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif subsequently promoted then-Chief of General Staff Lieutenant General Raza to the rank of four-star general and appointed him to head the newly established command.