US condition before deciding about IMF bailout package for Pakistan
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WASHINGTON - US has reportedly put forward condition of first examining Pakistan’s Chinese loans and debts before deciding the IMF bailout package.
US State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said Pakistan’s request for an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout package will be closely examined as “part of the reason that Pakistan found itself in this situation is Chinese debt”.
“I think part of the reason that Pakistan found itself in this situation is Chinese debt and the fact that there is debt that governments have incurred that they may be thought wouldn’t be so tough to bail themselves out of, but has become increasingly tough.”
Nauert identified loans Pakistan has taken from China to fund the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as the reason for its current financial trouble while speaking to media during a state department press briefing. The spokesperson was responding to a reporter’s question about Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s previous reservations on bailout packages for Pakistan.
Earlier in the year, Pompeo had warned any IMF bailout packages given to Pakistan should not be used to pay off Chinese debts.
