senior commanders that: "The hanging of Bhutto would be an unwise act, as it could cause very serious "political aberrations" that will be difficult to correct. In 1979, Major-General Beg was moved at Army GHQ, taking over the staff appointment as an Adjutant-General, which he served until 1980. He was later elevated as the Chief of General Staff (CGS), remained in charge of operational planning of the counter-offensive to the Indian invasion of Siachen marking the beginnings of the ongoing Siachen conflict in 1984. In 1985, Major-General Beg was elevated to three-star promotion and was appointed as Corp's Commander of the XI Corps, that stationed in Peshawar, which had role in the indirect war with the Soviet Army in Afghanistan, since 1980. According to the military authors and Pakistani historians' accounts, Lieutenant-General Beg was extremely distrusted by President Zia-ul-Haq, mainly due to his open-mindedness and his pro-democracy views, at one point, advising President Zia to "rendezvous with the nation's history and democratize the country." In 1987, Lieutenant-General Beg was in the race for the promotion of four-star appointment, along with Lieutenant-General Zahid Ali Akbar, but was overlooked by President Zia who wanted to Lt.Gen. Akbar for the four-star appointment as chief of army staff. Prime Minister M.K. Junejo eventually used his prerogative to appoint Lieutenant-General Mirza Aslam Beg as vice-army chief on merit, despite President Zia wanting Lieutenant-General Zahid Ali Akbar who was sent to DESTO. Chief of Army Staff In March 1987, Prime Minister Mohammad Junejo announced in the news media of appointing Lieutenant-General Beg as a Vice Chief of Army Staff, promoting him as the four-star rank general in the army. Though, General Beg did not supersede anyone and was the most senior, the promotion was notable due to the opposition shown by President Zia-ul-Haq who wanted Lieutenant-General Zahid Ali Akbar, an engineer, as vice army chief. Despite his four-star command assignment, General Beg had to report his duties and decisions to President Zia who had been army chief since 1976. Eventually, General Beg succeeded President Zia as the new army chief and the command of the army when the latter died in an accidental plane crash on 17 August 1988. American military authors regarded Beg as "mild but bookish general" keen to drive the country towards the tracks of democracy. The United States military regarded Beg as an "Unpredictable General" could not be counted on to continue