Waheed Arshad,

HI(M) HI or Hi may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Hello Internet'', a podcast hosted by CGP Grey and Brady Haran * ''Hi'' (magazine), teen-lifestyle publication * "Hi" (Ofra Haza song), a song by Ofra Haza, Israel's entry in the 1983 Eurovisio ...

, Tbt, is a retired three-star

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

in the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...

who served as the Chief of General Staff (CGS) at the

General Headquarters The General Headquarters (abbreviated Army GHQ) is the direct reporting and the command post of the Pakistan Army, located in the Chaklala at the vicinity of Rawalpindi, adjacent to the Joint Staff Headquarters (JS HQ). History In 1851, th ...

from 2010 to 2013."Lt-Gen Waheed Arshad new CGS"
Dawn (newspaper), Published 1 October 2010, Retrieved 26 March 2019 His previous appointments at the GHQ include; IG Training and Evaluation (IGT&E), Vice Chief of General Staff (VCGS) and DG Planning at COAS Secretariat. Waheed Arshad also served as the Chief Army Spokesman heading the

Inter Services Public Relations The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) () is the media and public relations wing of the Pakistan Armed Forces. It broadcasts and coordinates military news and information to the country's civilian media and the civic society. It operated ...

from 2007 to 2008.

Army career

Waheed Arshad was commissioned in the

Armoured Corps An armoured corps (also mechanized corps or tank corps) is a specialized military organization whose role is to conduct armoured warfare. The units belonging to an armoured corps include military staff, and are equipped with tanks and other arm ...

of the

in October 1975 in the 52nd PMA Long Course. He is a graduate of Command and Staff College

Quetta Quetta is the capital and largest city of the Pakistani province of Balochistan. It is the ninth largest city in Pakistan, with an estimated population of over 1.6 million in 2024. It is situated in the south-west of the country, lying in a ...

; Turkish War College,

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, and the National Defence College in

Islamabad Islamabad (; , ; ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's tenth-most populous city with a population of over 1.1 million and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital Territory. Bu ...

. He holds master's degrees in War and Strategic Studies from

Quaid-i-Azam University Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU), founded as the University of Islamabad, is a public research university in Islamabad, Pakistan. Founded as the University of Islamabad in 1967, it was initially dedicated to postgraduate study, but later expande ...

and a diploma in the

Turkish Language Turkish ( , , also known as 'Turkish of Turkey') is the most widely spoken of the Turkic languages, a member of Oghuz languages, Oghuz branch with around 90 million speakers. It is the national language of Turkey and one of two official languag ...

from

National University of Modern Languages The National University of Modern Languages (NUMLs) (Urdu: ) is a multi-campus public university with its main campus located in Islamabad, Pakistan and other campuses in different cities of Pakistan. The university offers undergraduate, gradu ...

, Islamabad.

Command, staff and instructional appointments

During his career, he served as Brigade Major of an Independent Armored Brigade Group and remained on the faculty of

Pakistan Military Academy Pakistan Military Academy (PMA) is a military academy located nearby Kakul village in Abbottabad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Established in October 1947, it is the only service academy in Pakistan that trains cadets to serve as army of ...

Kakul Kakul (Kakol) is a village situated in the Tehsil and District Abbottabad, at an elevation of 1300 metres, 5 km northeast of center of Abbottabad city near the Thandiani Hills. Abbottabad is a District of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pa ...

, School of Infantry and Tactics, Quetta and National Defence College, Islamabad. He commanded 16 Horse, an Armored Regiment and both an Armored and Infantry Brigades. He has also served as General Staff Officer Grade-1 and Director Military Operations at Military Operations Directorate.

Senior appointments

Waheed Arshad was promoted to Major General on 7 January 2005. He was then sent as GOC 26th Mechanized Division in

Bahawalpur Bahawalpur (Urdu: ; ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the 13th largest city of Pakistan and List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, 8th most populous city of Punjab. Bahawalpur is the capital of Bahawalpur Division. Founded in ...

where he served until April 2007. He then proceeded to relieve Maj-Gen Shaukat Sultan as DG

. In January 2008, Waheed Arshad was appointed as the Director General, Planning at Chief Of Army Staff (COAS) Secretariat, heading the army's think-tank. This post was established by the former Army Chief General

Jehangir Karamat General Jehangir Karamat ( ; born 20 February 1941) is a Pakistani former military officer, diplomat, public intellectual, and a former professor of political science at the National Defense University. Prior to serving as a Chief of Army Sta ...

. Maj-Gen Khalid Kidwai (who retired as Lt-Gen and chief of Strategic Planning Division) and Maj-Gen

Ahsan Saleem Hyat General Ahsan Saleem Hayat ( ; born 10 January 1948), is a retired senior officer of the Pakistan Army who served as the Vice Chief of Army Staff of the Pakistan Army from 2004 until his retirement in 2007. Prior to that, he served as the op ...

(who retired as general in the capacity of VCOAS) held the appointments of DG Planning in the past. In October 2008, Waheed Arshad was appointed as the Vice Chief of General Staff (VCGS) of the Army replacing Lt. Gen. Muhammad Yousaf who took over the XXXI Corps at Bahawalpur. Waheed Arshad was promoted to

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

in April 2010 and took over as IG Training and Evaluation (IGT&E)."Wyne made chief of general staff"
Dawn (newspaper), Published 18 April 2010, Retrieved 26 March 2019 Barely six months later in October 2010, he took over as Chief of General Staff (CGS), the most coveted posting in

. He replaced the recently promoted General

Khalid Shameem Wynne Khalid Shameem Wynne (; 28 August 1953 – 30 December 2017), was a Pakistani four star general, four-star General (Pakistan), general who served as the 14th Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (Pakistan), Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of St ...

who was appointed as

Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee The Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) is, in principle, the highest-ranking and senior most uniformed military officer, typically at four-star rank, in the Pakistan Armed Forces who serves as a principal staff officer (PSO) an ...

. He was succeeded as CGS by Lt General Rashad Mahmood, who later became the

Personal life

Waheed Arshad is married and has three children.

Awards and decorations

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Arshad, Waheed Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Pakistan Army lieutenant generals Chiefs of the General Staff (Pakistan) Directors-general of the Inter-Services Public Relations National Defence University, Pakistan alumni