The Pakistan Armed Forces (; ˈpaːkɪstaːn mʊsaːləɦ əfwaːdʒ) are the military forces of Pakistan. It is the world's sixth-largest military measured by active military personnel and consist of three formally uniformed services—the Army, Navy, and the Air Force, which are backed by several paramilitary forces such as the National Guard and the Civil Armed Forces. A critical component to the armed forces' structure is the Strategic Plans Division Force, which is responsible for the maintenance and safeguarding of Pakistan's tactical and strategic nuclear weapons stockpile and assets. The President of Pakistan is the Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Armed Forces and the chain of command is organized under the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (JCSC) alongside the respective Chiefs of staffs of the Army, Navy, and Air Force. All branches are systemically coordinated during joint operations and missions under the Joint Staff Headquarters (JSHQ).
Since the 1963 Sino-Pakistan Agreement, the Pakistani military has had close relations with China, working jointly to develop the JF-17, the K-8, and various weapons systems. China was the largest foreign supplier of military equipment to Pakistan in major arms. The military cooperation between the Chinese People's Liberation Army and Pakistan have accelerated the pace of joint military exercises, and their increasingly compatible weapons supply chains and network communication systems have accelerated the integration of defense capabilities between the two sides. Both nations also cooperate on the development of their nuclear and space technology programs. Alongside this, the Pakistani military also maintains relations with the United States in history, which gave Pakistan major non-NATO ally status in 2004. As such, Pakistan procures the bulk of its military equipment from China, the United States and its own domestic suppliers.
The Pakistan Armed Forces were formed in 1947, when Pakistan gained independence from the British Empire.
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Related concepts (21)
The Pakistan Army (, ˈpaːkɪstaːn faːɔːdʒ), commonly known as the Pak Army () is the land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The President of Pakistan is the Supreme Commander of the Army. The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), a four-star general commands the army. The Army was established in August 1947 after Pakistan gained independence from the United Kingdom.
The Politics of Pakistan () takes place within the framework established by the constitution. The country is a federal parliamentary republic in which provincial governments enjoy a high degree of autonomy and residuary powers. Executive power is vested with the national cabinet which is headed by Prime Minister of Pakistan (Shehbaz Sharif; since 11 April 2022), who works coherently along with the bicameral parliament and the judicature.
The Pakistan People's Party (, پاڪستان پيپلز پارٽي; PPP) is a centre-left, social-democratic political party in Pakistan. It is currently the second-largest party in the National Assembly and the Senate of Pakistan. The party was founded in 1967 in Lahore, when a number of prominent left-wing politicians in the country joined hands against the military rule of president Muhammad Ayub Khan, under the leadership of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. It is affiliated with the Socialist International.