October 24, 2021
2 mins read

Has FATF failed in its duty to blacklist Pakistan?

FATF too expressed concern about the current evolving money laundering and terrorist financing risk environment in Afghanistan…reports Mrityunjoy Kumar Jha

Once again, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has failed to blacklist Pakistan.

FATF, the global body working to combat financing of terrorism and money laundering let Pakistan off the hook, despite Islamabad’s repeated failure to adequately investigate and prosecute senior leaders and commanders of UN-designated terrorist groups. Nevertheless, Pakistan remains grey-listed -a dubious position that it has maintained for more than three years in a row. The main reason for Pakistan’s embarrassing status is its inability to tackle the money laundering and terror financing that FATF had earlier flagged.

FATF President Marcus Pleyer asserted that of the 27 action points agreed under the June 2018 plan, Pakistan has implemented 26 but has not addressed the most crucial point – the investigation of senior leaders and commanders of UN designated terrorist groups.

FATF also expressed concern about the current evolving money laundering and terrorist financing risk environment in Afghanistan. “We affirm recent UNSC resolutions on situation Afghanistan. We demand that country not be used to plan or finance terrorist acts,” Pleyer said.

Interestingly, the latest US Congressional report on terrorism “Terrorist and Other Militant Groups in Pakistan”, underlines that at least 12 groups designated as “foreign terrorist organizations” by the US are based in Pakistan including five that are India-centric. As per the US administration, Islamabad continues to remain a base of operations for numerous non-state militant groups, many with global reach.

In the last meeting of the FATF, Pakistan was given time until October to act against 8 terror groups – the Afghan Taliban, Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), Haqqani Network, Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation, al-Qaeda and Islamic State.

“Some of these entities and their leaders are now part of the interim Afghan government. That makes it impossible for Pakistan to move against them,” says Shahbaz Rana, a Pakistani journalist.

Interestingly, few hours before of the FATF press conference on Thursday, the Pakistani foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and ISI chief Faiz Hameed were meeting Taliban ministers including Sirajuddin Haqqani, the interior minister of Afghanistan and chief of UN designated terror outfit Haqqani Network. He has a bounty of $ 10 million on his head. Experts believe that Pakistan has not given recognition to the new government in Afghanistan yet fearing possible action from FATF. The Pakistanis backed the Taliban diplomatically even financially, not to mention militarily.

FATF too expressed concern about the current evolving money laundering and terrorist financing risk environment in Afghanistan. “We affirm recent UNSC resolutions on situation Afghanistan. We demand that country not be used to plan or finance terrorist acts,” Pleyer said.

And Pakistan has to act by the next session of the Global watchdog scheduled to be held in February next year. Earlier China, Turkey and Malaysia have been helping Pakistan to prevent its blacklisting but now Turkey finds itself in the greylist of the FATF.

(The content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)

ALSO READ: Pakistan fails in convincing IMF to resume $6bn extended fund

Previous Story

‘Japan Day’ at Expo 2020 to promote Expo 2025 Osaka

Next Story

Japan scrambles fighter jets over Chinese chopper take off

Latest from -Top News

Bangladesh Seeks Fresh Talks on Ganges Treaty

Even though India continues to bat for the normalisation of relations between the two neighbouring countries, the current regime in Dhaka has faced massive criticism for making groundless accusations…reports Asian Lite News

Uniting Global Artistry In Dubai’s Heart

Art events are no more about showcasing art, it is about connecting and collaborating, and bringing artists and collectors n an engaging manner … A special report by Soniya Kirpalani, Photographs/ Video:

India-Philippines Bond Shines in Cebu

India and the Philippines have collaborated on sustaining and consolidating their cultural relations since the establishment of diplomatic relations…reports Asian Lite News To mark 75 years of diplomatic ties between India and

Goyal: India Racing Toward a $35T Economy

Goyal emphasised that India will emerge as the world’s third-largest economy sooner than anticipated…reports Asian Lite News Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Sunday expressed confidence that India is on

Land Bill Stalls, Nepal in Crisis

The high political drama in the Himalayan Kingdom has got intense as the government led by K P Sharma Oli lacks the numbers in the National Assembly to get ordinances accepted….reports Asian
Go toTop

Don't Miss

Pakistan’s security situation remains grim

The majority of attacks last month took place in Khyber

US has always used Pakistan, says Imran Khan

The Prime Minister made the remarks during an interview with