Pakistani Army Chief Asim Munir faced a sharp rebuke from Pakistani MP Aimal Wali Khan, who publicly insulted him by referring to him as a ‘salesman’.
Pakistani Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir is facing backlash at home after presenting rare earth minerals to US President Donald Trump. A senator has questioned the field marshal’s authority to make such a gesture and criticised the optics of the event.ย
Asim Munir mocked as ‘salesman’
Speaking in Pakistan’s Parliament, Senator Aimal Wali Khan lashed out at Munir for allegedly presenting rare earth minerals to Trump during Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharifโs Washington visit. He said thatย Munir is behaving “like a salesman” while Shehbaz Sharif looked on “like a manager watching the drama”.ย
Khan questioned the authority and basis on which Munir presented rare minerals to Trump. The controversy erupted after a viral photo showed Munir showing colorful stonesโreportedly rare earth minerals from Pakistanโin a briefcase to the US Presidentย in the White House.
“Our chief of army staff is roaming around with a briefcase containing rare earth minerals. What a joke! It was absolute mockery. Whoever saw that photo thought, ‘Which chief of the army staff would go around carrying a briefcase with rare earth minerals?’ To me, it looked like a big, branded store โ a manager watched on happily as a shopkeeper tells a customer to purchase a big, glittery thing from him.”
“In what capacity? Under which law? This is dictatorship. I am sorry to say this is not democracy…is this not contempt of parliament?” he added.
Earlier, Khan had likened Munir presenting rare earth minerals to Trump to an “elite designer shop,” highlighting his skepticism over the field marshalโs involvement in matters relating to strategic resources.
Trump praises Sharif and Munir
Earlier this week, the White House released a photo showing Trump keenly examining a wooden box containing rare earth minerals presented by Munir as Sharif looked on from the sidelines. Trump then lavishly praised Sharif and Munir.
This comes after Pakistani military engineering and construction firm, Frontier Works Organisation, signed an MoU with US-based Strategic Metals to jointly explore strategic minerals in Pakistan for defense and technology purposes.
The photo-op occurred following a closed-door meeting between Pakistani leaders and President Trump at the White House. Notably, this marked Munir’โs third visit to the US in just five months, signifying Pakistan’s increasing engagement with the Trump administration.
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