*ISLAMABAD – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) delegation, headed byHerald Finger, reached Pakistan on Thursday morning to hold talks with thegovernment.*
The delegation and the government will discuss economic issues during theirmeeting scheduled to take place later today, local media reported. However,finance minister Asad Umar has previously said that the discussion is ‘notto negotiate for a loan’. “Our purpose is to do our homework, in case wewant to approach them at some stage,” he said.
Earlier, Pakistan dismissed the notion that it would use any funds from apossible bailout from IMF, the US-based international lender, to repay itsdebts to China. Instead it would use them to continue financing itsimports, a government official said.
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“If the US vehemently objects to an IMF bailout, we are going to convincethem that this money will not go to China,” said Abdul Qadir Memon,Pakistan’s consul general in Hong Kong, reported *Nikkei Asian Review*. “Itwill go to balance our external accounts so that we are able to sustain ourimports for the next year or so,” he said.
