After taking steps against terror groups, Pakistan, now, may be out of the 'Grey List' of the international terror financing watchdog FATF next month.
According to a report by India Today, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) will hold its next plenary on February 16. The report further states that after heavy lobbying by China there is "a 75 per cent chance of Pakistan exiting the 'grey list' now".
In order to avoid the blacklist, Pakistan needs the support of Malaysia and Turkey besides China. If Pakistan comes out of the FATF 'Grey List', it will be easy for the country to get financial aid from the IMF, World Bank, ADB and the European Union, helping improve its precarious financial situation. The FATF plenary had noted in its last meeting held in October 2019 that Pakistan addressed only five out of the 27 tasks given to it in controlling funding to terror groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad and Hizbul Mujahideen, responsible for a series of attacks in India.
The FATF said it strongly urges Pakistan to swiftly complete its full action plan by February 2020. In the Beijing meeting, Pakistan provided a list of its action taken to comply with the FATF diktat.
Earlier, Pakistan was placed on the 'Grey List' by the FATF in June 2018 and was given a plan of action to complete it by October 2019 or face the risk of being placed on the blacklist along with Iran and North Korea.
The FATF is an inter-governmental body established in 1989 to combat money laundering, terrorist financing and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system. The FATF currently has 35 members and two regional organisations -- the European Commission and Gulf Cooperation Council. India is a member of the FATF consultations and its Asia Pacific Group and was represented in the meeting by a team of officials from the ministries of Home, External Affairs and Finance.
