Federal government announces Lt. Gen. Asim Munir as next army chief.

“We don’t know who they will nominate, but the president and I have agreed to play by the rules and follow the Constitution and the law.”
Lt Gen Asim Munir: A Synopsis

Using his constitutional authority, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also appointed Lt Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, according to Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb.

وزیراعظم پاکستان محمد شہباز شریف نے آئینی اختیار استعمال کرتے ہوئے لیفٹنٹ جنرل ساحر شمشاد مرزا کو چئیرمین جوائنٹ چیفس آف سٹاف اور لیفٹنٹ جنرل سید عاصم منیر کو چیف آف دی آرمی سٹاف مقرر کرنے کا فیصلہ کیا ہے۔ اس بابت سمری صدر پاکستان کو ارسال کر دی گئی ہے۔

— Marriyum Aurangzeb (@Marriyum_A) November 24, 2022

The summary of the appointments has been given to President Arif Alvi for approval, the information minister continued. The most senior military commanders were chosen for both positions.

After receiving permission from the associated parties to choose the officers for the top positions, PM Shehbaz called a federal cabinet meeting to discuss the selections.

Although the president, who is a member of the PTI, has received the summary, the coalition allies had already cautioned him to avoid being loyal to his party and to act in the best interests of the state.

Asif desires to avoid “controversy”

Defense Minister Khawaja Asif acknowledged that the president had received the summary in a talk with the media following the federal cabinet meeting.

“All the issues have been resolved in accordance with the Pakistani Constitution, and hopefully the president won’t stir up any trouble,” Asif remarked. The minister went on to say that he anticipates President Alvi will accept the premier’s recommendation.

He said that he hoped the selections in question wouldn’t be seen as political.

Regarding PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s discussion of the issue with President Alvi, the minister declined to comment. He claimed to have tweeted about the subject.

He asserted that there should be no controversy about the Pakistani Air Force, Navy, or Army. Asif announced that a thorough press statement on the progress will be released.

I’ll play with the President

PTI Chairman Imran Khan stated that President Alvi was in touch with him and would discuss the nomination of the top two seats as soon as word spread that the summary will be delivered soon.

According to the PTI head, “I am in communication with the president regarding the summary relating to a critical appointment.” “I have spoken to him” (the president). He’ll talk to me about everything. I am a party leader because the prime minister is going to a runaway. He will undoubtedly talk about

Khan declared he was skeptical about Nawaz Sharif, the leader of the PML-N. I want the choice to be based on merit, not who is chosen to lead the army, he said, adding that he has no stake in the outcome because he has “no corruption cases to settle with their assistance.”

“The issue was quite straightforward. The seniority rules have been established. The army is aware of which of its members are capable, but I have my doubts about the huge corrupt mafia—the group that will select and appoint them—and not the individual who will be chosen.

Who is Asim Muneer?

After graduating from the Mangala Officers Training School, Lt Gen Asim Munir joined the Pakistani Army and was commissioned into the Frontier Force Regiment.

As a brigadier, he oversaw the Northern Areas Force before being chosen as the Military Intelligence’s director-general at the beginning of the year. He was appointed as the Inter-Services Intelligence Director-General in 2018. (ISI).

After that, he served for two years as Corps Commander in Gujranwala. He is currently working at the General Headquarters as the Quarter Master (GHQ).

In addition, Lt Gen Mirza was a member of the coordination team that monitored talks with Afghanistan and coordinated operations against militants in North Waziristan.

A participant in the Gilgit-Baltistan Reforms Committee was H. Mirza was named the Chief of the General Staff after rising to the rank of Lieutenant General. He is now the Corps Commander for Rawalpindi.

Winter gas load shedding in Pakistan now routine, straining industrial

According to how things have changed thus far, these winters may not necessarily be considerably harsher in terms of gas load shedding. There is a lot in the dark in terms of LNG Gas supply come the three months starting December.

Qatar and China signing the biggest LNG agreement in history, the market won’t be very active until at least 2026. Market watchers, there won’t be any new supply contracts on the LNG long-term contract market for at least three more years. The ships around the western coasts are gradually getting their opportunity to unload. All things considered, even though winter is harder than previous, Europe has generally secured a sufficient supply.

LNG Gas Supply Cargo Imports

The LNG market will enter a bear market since Europe continues to be the preferred destination and because the differential between East and West has grown as a result of Europe‘s daily decline in Russian imports. Given that the spot market will account for the majority of price variation, the near certainty surrounding long-term contracts does indicate price stability.

Pakistan continued to handle 10 LNG cargoes during the November price determination reference period. The composition has altered since Pakistan hasn’t had any takers for its invites to bids from the spot market in a while. The import of LNG is nearly fully supported by long-term agreements with several partners at varied rates. Contrary to the previous year, there have not been many last-minute cancellations of cargo on the spot market.

But since Pakistan relies mostly on supply from state-owned contracts, which have a better track record of being honored, there isn’t much to be canceled. Since the Slope is based on the trailing three-month Brent oil price average, lower Brent prices will be helpful.

The average consumer RLNG price, excluding GST, for November has been calculated to be roughly $14/MMBtu; it has been steadily declining since June 2022 and has been a fairly constant month over month.

Nearly half of the long-term contractual supply is now covered by PSO contracts at 10.2% of Brent, substantially reducing the average Delivered Ex-Ship Price. The administration has not indicated that it would change its policy of prioritizing the local market.

Nevertheless, despite explicit agreements with the IMF, a decision about weighted average gas prices is still waiting. Remember how the government decided to increase consumer gas prices by more than what the authorities had set? Gas prices may have peaked, but supply will still fall short of the demand for the season.