'Asim Munir is Osama Bin Laden in a suit': Ex-Pentagon official calls for immediate ban of Pakistan army chief in US until...
Former Pentagon official Michael Rubin on Tuesday sharply criticised Pakistan's army chief, Asim Munir, for his recent 'nuclear threat' comment during a visit to the United States. Rubin said Munir's words reminded him of Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks. 'The Field Marshal's language sounds similar to what we once heard from Osama bin Laden,' Rubin said.
He explained that Americans often see terrorism as the result of grievances but fail to recognise the deep-rooted ideology behind it. 'Asim Munir is Osama Bin Laden in a suit and there will be no amount of concession that will be given to Pakistan that is going to change his ideology or the Pakistani elite he represents… The fact that Pakistan is threatening half of the world with nuclear weapons is a clear indication that it has lost its right to be a legitimate state.
#WATCH | Washington DC, USA | On upcoming meeting between US and Russia, Former Pentagon official Michael Rubin says, '…Asim Munir is Osama Bin Laden in a suit…'
He says, 'Donald Trump is a businessman and is used to horse-trading… He does not understand that a bad peace… pic.twitter.com/Cra1y24e19
— ANI (@ANI) August 12, 2025
The comments from the former US official came after Pakistan's army chief, Asim Munir, spoke at an event in Tampa, Florida, where he reportedly issued a serious nuclear threat, saying, 'We are a nuclear nation. If we think we are going down, we'll take half the world down with us.'
Rubin criticised US military leaders for not walking out of their meetings with Munir, saying that this alone should be reason enough for them to resign.
He argued that Pakistan should no longer be treated as a 'major non-NATO ally' by the United States, and instead should be the first country with that status to be listed as a state sponsor of terrorism. He also said Pakistan should be removed from the US Central Command's area of cooperation.
Rubin called for strong diplomatic action, saying Asim Munir should be declared persona non grata in the US and denied a visa, along with any other Pakistani official, until Pakistan gives an explanation and issues an apology.
'Within 30 minutes of when Asim Munir made those comments, he should have been ushered out, taken to Tampa International Airport, and flown out of the United States,' Rubin stated.
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