- National Command Authority (Pakistan)
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National Command Authority (NCA) 
Agency overview Formed February 2, 2000 Preceding agency None Jurisdiction Command and control of Pakistan's strategic nuclear forces and strategic organizations Headquarters Islamabad Agency executive Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani The National Command Authority (NCA) of Pakistan is a Pakistan government organization tasked with the command and control of Pakistan's strategic nuclear forces and strategic organizations.
The NCA is also responsible for policy formulation and the exercise of employment and development control over Pakistan's nuclear weapons and nuclear weapons programme.
Contents
Organizational structure
The NCA consists of the following nine ex officio members:[1]
- Prime Minister (who is the ex officio Chairman)
- Minister of Foreign Affairs
- Minister of Defence
- Minister of Finance
- Minister of Interior
- Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee
- Chief of the Army Staff
- Chief of the Naval Staff
- Chief of the Air Staff
The Director-General of the NCA's Strategic Plans Division (SPD) is the ex officio Secretary of the NCA and the SPD functions as the NCA's secretariat.[2]
Decision making in the NCA takes place through consensus and, in the event that consensus is not achieved, then through voting, with each member having a single vote.
Background
The Government of Pakistan felt the need to establish an administrative authority after Pakistan's first nuclear tests, codename Chagai-I and Chagai-II, on May 28th and May 30 of 1998 in Ras Koh Hills, District Chagai and Kharan Desert of the Balochistan Province. In April 1999, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and the Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan Army General Pervez Musharraff developed a unified central command system to use nuclear and missile technology.[3]
The NCA was formally established on February 2, 2000 after approval by Pakistan's National Security Council.
Since then, the National Command Authority is responsible for policy formulation and will exercise employment and development control over all strategic nuclear forces and strategic organizations. It consists of an Employment Control Committee and a Development Control Committee, as well as the Strategic Plans Division (SPD) which acts as its Secretariat. The Strategic Plans Division is responsible for the management and administration of the country's tactical and strategic nuclear weapons stockpile. It was created the same year as the NCA was formed.
Their directives are to be operationalized by a new Strategic Plans Division (SPD) under the control of a director-general of the rank of Lieutenant-General (Air Marshal or Vice-Admiral) in charge of the management and administration of the tactical and strategic nuclear forces. The current director-general of the SPD is Lieutenant-General (retired) Khalid Kidwai
Since its establishment, General Pervez Musharraf, as President, had served its first chairman. However, after the 2008 General Elections, the Pakistani lawmakers introduced a new law which was passed unanimously by the Parliament.[4] The bill placed the NCA's Authority under PM’s command.[5][6]
References
- ^ http://www.na.gov.pk/acts/act_2010/national_command_authority_act2010_090310.pdf
- ^ http://www.na.gov.pk/acts/act_2010/national_command_authority_act2010_090310.pdf
- ^ The National Command Authority
- ^ Parliament passes National Command Authority Bill 2009
- ^ Gilani holds National Command Authority meeting
- ^ 16th NCA Meeting
External links
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Categories:- Military of Pakistan
- Nuclear weapons programme of Pakistan
- Pakistan federal departments and agencies
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