CDF Asim Munir wins 'first prize' in post-US world, says FT

As the United States steps back from its long-held role as the world's strategic supervisor, the resulting vacuum has triggered a scramble among so-called "middle powers" to reposition themselves in a fast-shifting global order, and Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir has emerged as one of the most adept players, according to analysis by the Financial Times.

In a wide-ranging commentary on the accelerating decline of US global authority under President Donald Trump, the FT argues that while many countries have been unsettled by the speed of Washington's retreat, Pakistan's military leadership has adjusted with notable agility.

The paper declares Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir the "first prize" winner among middle-power leaders recalibrating their foreign policy to match what it calls Trump's "casual approach to the world".

The FT situates Pakistan's positioning within a broader historical shift, comparing America's withdrawal from global leadership to moments when former empires lost control after attempting managed reform.

While China has not rushed to fill the vacuum left by Washington, the FT argues that this has opened space for what it terms "entrepreneurial middle powers", and singles out Pakistan as the most effective example.

Describing CDF Asim Munir as "the very model of a middle power multi-aligner", the paper notes his ability to move with ease between Washington, Beijing, Riyadh and Tehran.

The FT observes that the reconfiguration has also allowed Islamabad to sustain engagement with the US without facing the democracy-focused lectures that once accompanied American diplomacy.

This adaptability has frustrated rivals such as India, which has been less willing to indulge Trump and has found the middle-power balancing act more difficult than expected, the commentary observes.