Salute, installing leader of government in nautical post (7)
I believe the answer is:
topmast
'government in nautical post' is the definition.
'topmast' can be an answer for 'post' (I have seen 'high post' mean 'topmast' so perhaps 'post' could also mean 'topmast'). I'm not certain of the 'government in nautical' bit.
'salute installing leader' is the wordplay.
'salute' becomes 'toast' (synonyms).
'installing' is an insertion indicator (I've seen this in other clues).
'leader' becomes 'pm' (PM is an example).
'toast' placed around 'pm' is 'TOPMAST'.
'of' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for topmast that I've seen before include "Most apt (anag) - feature of a square-rigged ship" , "Part of square-rigged ship" , "high post" , "High part of sailing ship" , "post on board" .)