FATF greylist: Ridicolous response surfaces from state sponsor of terror India against Pakistan
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ISLAMABAD - Responding to Pakistan being placed in greylist by FATF ealier this week, India in a statement said, "India welcomes the decision of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to place Pakistan in its Compliance Document (Grey list) for ICRG monitoring."
India further said, " Pakistan has given a high-level political commitment to address the global concerns regarding its implementation of the FATF standards for countering terror financing and anti-money laundering, especially in respect of UN-designated and internationally proscribed terror entities and individuals.
The freedom and impunity with which the designated terrorists like Hafiz Saed and entities like Jamaat-Ud-Dawaa, Lashkar-e-Tayabba, Jaish-e-Mohammed continue to operate in Pakistan is not in keeping with such commitments."
India further said that it hopes,"FATF Action plan shall be complied with in a time bound manner and credible measures would be taken by Pakistan to address global concerns related to terrorism emanating from any territory under its control."
In a blow to Pakistan, the Financial Action Task Force has placed it on the 'grey list' for failing to curb anti-terror financing despite Islamabad submitting a 26-point action plan and launching a concerted diplomatic effort to avert the decision, officials said today.
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 announcement comes even after Pakistan submitted a comprehensive 26-point action plan to the FATF to choke the funding of militants groups, including Mumbai attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed-led JuD and its affiliates, to avoid being blacklisted by it. The placement on the grey list could hurt Pakistan's economy as well as its international standing.
Commenting on the development, Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal said the decision to place Pakistan on the grey list was taken in February and there was nothing new. "In February 2018, during the FATF plenary session in Paris, it was agreed that Pakistan will be included in the grey list in June 2018.
Therefore, what is being reported in media recently is nothing new," he said. Faisal said that it was also agreed in February that an Action Plan would be negotiated between Pakistan and FATF members by June. "This has been done. Pakistan will work towards effective implementation of the Action Plan, while staying in the grey list," he said.
Pakistan remained on the FATF grey list from 2012 to 2015. On June 20, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan issued Anti Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Regulations 2018, in compliance with FATF recommendations.
On June 8, the National Security Committee (NSC) reaffirmed its commitment to cooperate with the FATF. By January next year, Pakistan will publish updated lists of persons and entities prescribed under the Anti-Terrorism Act and the UN-designated entities. Pakistan had tried hard to avoid being added to a list of countries deemed non-compliant with anti-money laundering and terrorist financing rules.
