Trump’s favorite field marshal: Who is Pakistan’s powerful army chief Asim Munir with deep intel ties

President Donald Trump publically thanked what he called Pakistan’s "great premier curate and section marshal, 2 awesome people!!!" successful a Truth Social station Friday praising Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Pakistan’s subject chief, Asim Munir.

Sharif quickly responded connected X, "On behalf of nan group of Pakistan, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, and connected my behalf, I definitive my heavy and profound appreciation for your benignant and gracious words."

The nationalist speech capped a singular emergence for Munir, who has go 1 of nan fewer overseas officials trusted some by Trump and by Iran’s information establishment.

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Vice President JD Vance walks pinch Pakistan's Chief of Defense Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir, Deputy Prime Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar, U.S. Embassy Charge d'Affaires Natalie A. Baker, and Interior Minister Mohsin Raza Naqvi aft arriving for talks pinch Iranian officials successful Islamabad, Pakistan, April 11, 2026. (Jacquelyn Martin/Reuters)

Munir precocious became nan first overseas subject leader to sojourn Iran since nan latest escalation betwixt nan United States and Iran, according to Pakistani and Iranian reports. Arriving successful afloat subject uniform, he was warmly greeted by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and held meetings pinch elder Iranian subject officials.

Retired Pakistani Gen. Ahmed Saeed told Fox News Digital that Munir has for months served arsenic an informal backmost transmission betwixt Washington and Tehran, Iran, arsenic nan Trump management tries to discuss an extremity to nan conflict, Iran’s atomic programme and nan naval blockade successful nan Persian Gulf.

Few overseas figures look to person person ties some to Trump and to Iran’s subject hierarchy.

That has raised a striking question: How did nan aforesaid man go adjacent some to Trump and to immoderate of Iran’s astir powerful commanders?

Saeed, who said he has known Munir personally for years, told Fox News Digital that Munir began building ties pinch Iran while serving arsenic Pakistan’s head wide of subject intelligence successful 2016 and 2017.

"He has been interacting pinch nan leadership. He has been interacting pinch nan intelligence community. He has been interacting pinch nan IRGC," aliases nan Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Saeed said.

According to Saeed, Munir built ties not only pinch nan Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps but besides pinch Iran’s regular service and intelligence apparatus. Saeed said Munir had longstanding interaction pinch erstwhile Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force commandant Qassem Soleimani, who was killed successful a U.S. onslaught successful 2020, commandant Hossein Salami, who was killed successful an Israeli onslaught successful June 2025, and different Iranian subject figures.

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Few overseas figures look to person person ties some to Trump and to Iran’s subject hierarchy.  (Iranian Presidency / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

"He continues to beryllium a fig internationally who has individual interactions, a individual equation successful nan intelligence organization successful Iran, successful nan subject level successful Iran, successful nan negotiated corps of Iran and besides connected nan broadside of nan governmental leadership," Saeed said.

That longstanding narration appears to explicate why Iran welcomed him truthful warmly, moreover arsenic he remains successful nonstop interaction pinch Trump and his team.

Foundation for Defense of Democracies' Bill Roggio told Fox News Digital that, "Trump should not spot nan Pakistanis. Pakistan was a perfidious ‘ally’ successful Afghanistan, backing nan Taliban while pretending to beryllium our friends. Munir’s ties to nan IRGC should beryllium a monolithic reddish emblem for nan Trump admin."

Munir’s narration pinch Trump dates backmost to nan India–Pakistan situation of May 2025. Munir played a cardinal domiciled successful helping de-escalate nan confrontation, and afterward Pakistan formally nominated Trump for nan Nobel Peace Prize, a move wide viewed by Pakistani analysts arsenic encouraged by Munir.

Pakistan's Asim Munir has go 1 of nan fewer overseas officials trusted by some President Donald Trump and Iran's information establishment, according to Pakistani analysts and officials. (Jacquelyn Martin / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

Since then, Trump many times has praised him. Trump has called Munir an "exceptional man," a "great fighter" and "my favourite section marshal." 

Pakistani officials and media reports opportunity nan 2 men now speak directly.

Pakistani expert Raza Rumi told Fox News Digital that Munir’s entreaty to Trump is not surprising.

"Trump has agelong shown a penchant for strong, decisive leaders," Rumi said. "Munir fits that mold arsenic a centralized authority fig who tin present outcomes."

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Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi were greeted by Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Army Chief Field Marshal Gen. Asim Munir upon their presence astatine Nur Khan airbase successful Rawalpindi, Pakistan, April 11, 2026. (Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs/AP)

Rumi described Munir arsenic "a disciplined, institution-first leader pinch a beardown accent connected order, level and strategical clarity."

"Unlike much publically charismatic subject figures, his style is comparatively understated, shaped by intelligence activity and operational acquisition alternatively than overt governmental signaling," Rumi said.

Munir’s inheritance helps explicate some his style and his influence.

Munir studied astatine nan Fuji School successful Japan, nan Command and Staff College successful Quetta, nan Malaysian Armed Forces College successful Kuala Lumpur, and Pakistan’s National Defence University, wherever he earned an maestro of accuracy grade n nationalist argumentation and strategical information management, according to Pakistan’s Geo News. Munir was nan first service main successful Pakistan to person nan Sword of Honour, nan military’s highest favoritism for a cadet. The outlet besides described him arsenic an avid reader, traveler and sportsman.

Munir is besides a Hafiz-e-Quran, meaning he has memorized nan full Quran by heart.

A erstwhile caput of some Pakistan’s Military Intelligence and Inter-Services Intelligence agencies, Munir spent years overseeing Pakistan’s astir delicate location relationships, including pinch Iran, Afghanistan and India.

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Vice President JD Vance shakes hands pinch Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar successful Islamabad connected April 12, 2026, aft talks connected Iran. Pakistan's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, Chief of Defence Forces Chief of Army Staff Field Marshall Asim Munir, and U.S. Embassy Charge d'Affaires Natalie A. Baker look connected arsenic Vance prepares to committee Air Force Two. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)

In 2025, aft nan India-Pakistan crisis, he was elevated to section marshal, nan first Pakistani serviceman to clasp nan rank since erstwhile subject ruler Ayub Khan.

Pakistani officials opportunity that later that year, he besides was fixed nan recently created title of main of defense forces, further cementing his authority supra nan country’s subject branches.

Munir seldom gives interviews, but his speeches connection clues to his worldview.

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A erstwhile caput of some Pakistan’s Military Intelligence and Inter-Services Intelligence agencies, Munir spent years overseeing Pakistan’s astir delicate location relationships, including pinch Iran, Afghanistan and India. (Iranian Presidency / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

At nan Margalla Dialogue successful Islamabad successful November 2024, he warned that "absence of due regulations for state of look is starring to nan deterioration of civilized values successful societies worldwide."

The remark reflected a broader accent connected order, subject and centralized authority.

Rumi said Munir operates from "a transactional, state-centric worldview alternatively than an ideological one."

Yet critics reason that his emergence has travel astatine a costs to Pakistan’s democracy.

After becoming service main successful 2022, Munir focused heavy connected home politics, including what critics described arsenic a crackdown connected governmental guidance and an unprecedented attraction of subject power, according to The Guardian, which reported that cardinal negotiations pinch nan United States and Iran person been coordinated not from Islamabad, Pakistan’s civilian capital, but from Rawalpindi, nan office of nan military.

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A surgery framework of Pakistan's section marshal and service chief, Asim Munir, hangs connected nan wall aft an onslaught astatine nan Cadet College Wana, a military-linked school, successful nan South Waziristan territory adjacent nan Pakistan-Afghanistan border, Nov. 13, 2025.  (Aamir Qureshi / AFP via Getty Images)

Critics opportunity that reflects a broader reality: Pakistan’s overseas policy is progressively being tally by nan service alternatively than nan elected government.

Rumi said Munir’s emergence reflects "the subject progressively eclipsing civilian activity successful Pakistan."

As nan existent negotiations continue, overmuch appears to remainder connected Munir. Saeed said that is because Munir has spent years building spot connected some sides and is improbable to extremity now.

"Knowing our section marshal, and from my ain individual knowledge of him, he is relentless. He would not springiness up," Saeed said.