Pakistan’s army chief returns to US amid shifting alliances, strategic flattery

In a move that underscores Pakistan’s accelerating efforts to cement strategic rapport with Washington, Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir is set to visit the United States for the second time in two months — a rare flurry of high-level military diplomacy pointing to recalibrated regional equations.

Munir will attend the farewell ceremony of US Central Command (CENTCOM) chief General Michael Kurilla, who is scheduled to retire later this month. Kurilla, a key US military figure overseeing operations across the Middle East and South Asia, has repeatedly lauded Pakistan’s role in counter-terrorism, calling the country a “phenomenal partner” — praise that raised eyebrows in New Delhi.

Earlier this year, Kurilla credited Islamabad for capturing five ISIS-Khorasan (ISIS-K) operatives based on US intelligence. “That’s why we need to have a relationship with Pakistan and with India,” he had remarked during a Congressional hearing, prompting concern in India over what appeared to be a revival of the Cold War-era policy of placing India and Pakistan on the same strategic footing.

Islamabad, in turn, reciprocated the sentiment with ceremony — awarding Kurilla the prestigious “Nishan-e-Imtiaz” during his visit to Pakistan in July.

A Trumpian twist: First-ever one-on-one with Pakistani general

Adding a dramatic political dimension to the military choreography, Munir made headlines in June after holding a one-on-one lunch with US President Donald Trump — a first-of-its-kind meeting between a Pakistani military leader and a US president without any civilian officials present.

The meeting came in the wake of heightened cross-border tensions in Kashmir following the Pahalgam terror strike and India’s subsequent Operation Sindoor. Trump later credited Munir with helping defuse the situation, even suggesting the Pakistani general averted war.

"The reason I had him here was I wanted to thank him for not going into the war and ending it," Trump said, framing himself as a peace broker. In a surprising gesture, Munir publicly endorsed Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize — a nomination that was swiftly formalized by Pakistan’s government days later.

Islamabad plays its Washington card

The back-to-back engagements are being seen as part of a carefully choreographed effort by Pakistan’s military establishment to realign itself with the U.S. at a time of shifting power dynamics in South Asia. With the Biden administration largely cold toward Islamabad, Trump’s warmth appears to offer Pakistan a diplomatic lifeline — especially in the face of growing U.S.-India proximity.

The flattery seems calculated: since May, Trump has repeatedly claimed credit for brokering a ceasefire between India and Pakistan — a claim firmly denied by New Delhi, which insists the truce resulted from direct military-level talks.

Still, for Pakistan, the optics — and the strategic dividends — of currying favor in Washington, whether under a former president or a retiring general, may outweigh the criticisms back home or the pushback from India.