{"id":23395,"date":"2025-05-05T05:30:12","date_gmt":"2025-05-05T05:30:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/pakistans-most-powerful-man-steps-out-of-the-shadows-to-confront-india\/"},"modified":"2025-05-05T05:30:12","modified_gmt":"2025-05-05T05:30:12","slug":"pakistans-most-powerful-man-steps-out-of-the-shadows-to-confront-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/pakistans-most-powerful-man-steps-out-of-the-shadows-to-confront-india\/","title":{"rendered":"Pakistan\u2019s Most Powerful Man Steps Out of the Shadows to Confront India"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- ItShrt World News -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1882483372\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-0\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Until recently, Pakistan\u2019s most powerful man preferred to stay behind the scenes, tightly controlling his public profile and limiting his pronouncements mostly to choreographed addresses at set-piece military events.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">But after the deadly terrorist attack nearly two weeks ago in the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir, Pakistan\u2019s army chief, Gen. Syed Asim Munir, has stepped to the center of sharpening tensions between Pakistan and India.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">As pressure has built in India for a forceful response to the attack, which killed more than two dozen Hindu tourists near the town of Pahalgam, General Munir has increasingly shaped Pakistan\u2019s tone with his own tough talk.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">On Thursday, standing atop a tank during a military exercise, General Munir <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/ispr.gov.pk\/press-release-detail?id=7270\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">addressed troops<\/a> in the field. \u201cLet there be no ambiguity,\u201d he said. \u201cAny military misadventure by India will be met with a swift, resolute and notch-up response.\u201d That was a reference to Pakistan\u2019s vow to match or exceed any Indian strike.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-1\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">General Munir\u2019s comments have been seen in India and Pakistan as reflecting his need to project strength and rally public support after <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/05\/02\/world\/asia\/pakistan-india-kashmir.html\" title=\"\">his country has struggled for years<\/a> with political divisions and economic hardship. Those troubles have dented the steadfast loyalty that Pakistanis had felt for decades toward the military establishment, which has long had a hidden hand in guiding the country\u2019s politics.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">But General Munir\u2019s response appears to be more than a political calculation. Analysts describe him as a hard-liner on India, with views shaped by his time leading Pakistan\u2019s two premier military intelligence agencies and by his belief that the long-running conflict with India is at heart a religious one.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-2\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Many in India have seized on remarks that General Munir made six days before the terrorist attack. In front of an audience of overseas Pakistanis in the capital, Islamabad, General Munir described Kashmir \u2014 which is divided between Pakistan and India but claimed in whole by each \u2014 as the country\u2019s \u201cjugular vein.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">That phrase, which is deeply woven into the country\u2019s nationalist vocabulary, signifies how Pakistan sees Kashmir as vital to its national identity. The Indian foreign ministry denounced the comment as inflammatory and called Kashmir an \u201cintegral part\u201d of India.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-3\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Whether the current crisis escalates or gives way to restraint will depend as much on international diplomacy as domestic politics.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The United States and the United Nations have called on India and Pakistan, both of which have nuclear weapons, to <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/05\/01\/world\/asia\/india-pakistan-kashmir-de-escalation.html\" title=\"\">work toward de-escalation<\/a>. In addition, Pakistan\u2019s permanent representative to the United Nations, Asim Ahmad, said on Friday that Pakistani diplomats and government ministers had spoken with their Chinese counterparts about the tensions with India. China is an ally of Pakistan and has economic interests there.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">But diplomacy may not be enough. India\u2019s strongman prime minister, Narendra Modi, whose brand of Hindu nationalism paints Muslims at home and in Pakistan as a threat, has promised that India will pursue \u201cevery terrorist and their backers to the ends of the earth.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">After attacks on Indian security forces in Kashmir in 2016 and 2019, India responded by striking what it said were terrorist camps inside Pakistan. This time, with 26 innocent people killed by attackers at a tourist destination \u2014 the deadliest such assault in the region in decades \u2014 \u201ca mere cross-border airstrike on presumed camps is not going to satisfy the right-wing supporters\u2019 blood lust,\u201d said Aditya Sinha, an author and journalist based in Delhi.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-4\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">For his part, General Munir has spoken since the Pahalgam attack in explicitly ideological terms that indicate he is disinclined to believe that long-term peace with India is possible.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-5\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">On April 26, he <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tnnenglish.com\/we-know-how-to-defend-pakistan-says-army-chief-at-pma-passing-out-parade\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">addressed cadets at a graduation ceremony<\/a> for the country\u2019s premier military academy. He invoked the \u201ctwo-nation theory\u201d \u2014 the framework behind Pakistan\u2019s founding in 1947, which asserts that Hindus and Muslims are separate nations needing separate homelands.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The theory has long underpinned Pakistan\u2019s national identity and foreign policy. In the past, Pakistan\u2019s generals embraced this ideological rhetoric during moments of tension with India and dialed it back when diplomacy beckoned. General Munir\u2019s revival of the theory and other comments have been interpreted by many Indians as a pronounced shift in Pakistan\u2019s stance toward India.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">His framing of Kashmir as Pakistan\u2019s \u201cjugular vein\u201d has particularly struck a nerve in India. In the same speech, General Munir said, \u201cWe will not leave our Kashmiri brethren in their heroic struggle that they are waging against Indian occupation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Shekhar Gupta, editor in chief of ThePrint, an Indian online newspaper, said the timing and animus of the comments would be hard for India to ignore.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-6\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThe Pahalgam outrage followed just after General Munir\u2019s speech,\u201d Mr. Gupta, said. \u201cIndia would have to be frightfully complacent not to draw the connection, especially as he had raked up hostility to Hindus, which no Pakistani leader \u2014 civil or military \u2014 had done for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Pakistani officials have rejected any connection between General Munir\u2019s remarks and the attack in Kashmir. Mr. Ahmad, Pakistan\u2019s permanent representative at the United Nations, dismissed India\u2019s claim of Pakistani links to the attack and said that the \u201croot cause\u201d of instability in South Asia remained the unresolved dispute over Kashmir.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The region has been at the heart of the India-Pakistan rivalry since the partition in 1947 that created the two nations out of British India. Kashmir has witnessed wars, insurgencies and prolonged military deployments, making it one of the world\u2019s most volatile flash points.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-7\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The current face-off is not General Munir\u2019s first brush with a regional crisis.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In 2019, when a suicide bombing in Kashmir triggered Indian airstrikes and a brief military escalation, General Munir was the leader of Pakistan\u2019s powerful intelligence agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, or I.S.I. His tenure ended just months later when Prime Minister Imran Khan removed him.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-8\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Khan would later oppose General Munir\u2019s elevation to army chief, and their relationship has remained hostile. After falling out with the military leadership, Mr. Khan was ousted in April 2022. General Munir assumed his command as army chief seven months later. Mr. Khan, who retains widespread support among the Pakistani public, has been in prison for two years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">As General Munir works to keep control of his public image, he avoids unscripted remarks. His speeches are forceful and devoid of ambiguity, often drawing on religious themes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">General Munir is \u201csteeped in religion,\u201d and that colors his view of relations with India, said Husain Haqqani, a former Pakistani ambassador to the United States. \u201cAt best,\u201d Mr. Haqqani said, \u201che would look for managing tensions \u2014 and score as many points as he can along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In this way, General Munir seems to reflect the turn toward a more Islamist Pakistani armed forces that the military dictator Gen. Mohammad Zia ul-Haq set in motion in the 1980s. General Zia did so in coordination with the United States as it courted jihadists to wage war against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">General Munir has also presided over growing military control of Pakistani politics and society, restricting dissent, critics say.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-9\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cHe appears to want being in control more than wanting to be liked,\u201d Mr. Haqqani said. \u201cThat has been his approach in domestic politics and will be his likely approach in dealing with India.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The military has appeared to take a stronger hand in relations with India, moving to consolidate institutional control over any future talks by appointing the country\u2019s spy chief as national security adviser. That role had historically been held by retired generals and civilians.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">For now, diplomatic relations between the two countries remain frozen. Aggressive public messaging, rather than quiet diplomacy, has become the primary channel of communication. In such a climate, the risk of miscalculation is acute.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Zahid Hussain, a political and security analyst in Islamabad, said Pakistan would feel compelled to respond if India launched military strikes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThe question is whether Mr. Modi can choose to stop at this point,\u201d he said. \u201cEven limited Indian strikes could spiral into a broader conflict.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-798hid etfikam0\">Eve Sampson<!-- --> contributed reporting from the United Nations.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- ItShrt World News -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1882483372\"\r\n     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his<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23396,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[6817,576,471,6815,98,1724,6816,1295,1725,593,1115],"class_list":["post-23395","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world","tag-asim","tag-defense-and-military-forces","tag-india","tag-inter-services-intelligence","tag-international-relations","tag-modi","tag-munir","tag-muslims-and-islam","tag-narendra","tag-nationalism-theory-and-philosophy","tag-pakistan"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Pakistan\u2019s Most Powerful Man Steps Out of the Shadows to Confront India - World News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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