General Sayed Asim Munir on Tuesday took charge as the 17th Army chief of Pakistan at a ceremony held at the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi.
The change of command ceremony took place after a gap of six years, as General Qamar Javed Bajwa, now retired, was given a three-year extension in 2019.
Held at the Army Hockey Ground, it was attended by military leadership from the armed forces, former army chiefs, senior officers and leaders from all political parties.
Pervez Khattak, Asad Qaiser and Hamad Azhar to name a few from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf were also in attendance.
Amid extraordinary security clampdown, the outgoing army chief handed the baton of command over to General Asim in a smooth transfer of power.
Conspicuous by their absence were Lt General Azhar Abbas and Lt General Faiz Hameed. Both the generals have sought early retirement, though they could have continued their service till April next year.
In his address of farewell, General Bajwa felicitated Asim Munir's elevation to the seat of army chief and expressed confidence that his promotion will prove to be highly positive -- both for the country and Pakistan Army.
He said he had 24-hour association with the new army chief.
He maintained that General Munir is a professional and capable officer and a man of principle.
General Bajwa said he was confident that under the leadership of Asim Munir, the army would achieve more success and further serve and defend the country.
The outgoing COAS added that he was honoured to have served the army.
He said during his six-year tenure as the army chief, "Pakistan Army tackled many challenges, be it the situation on the Line of Control, terrorism or the natural calamities".
He said he was proud of the army that "despite limited resources, fulfilling its responsibility of defending each nook and corner of the country".
"Pakistan today is the abode of peace because of our sacrifices which are also acknowledged both by our foes and friends," he added.