ISLAMABAD – The United Nations Security Council’s sanctions monitoring teamwill visit Islamabad next week for an assessment of Pakistan’s compliancewith the world body’s sanctions regime. “The monitoring team of the UNSC1267 Sanctions Committee will be here on January 25 and 26.
The visit is taking place amid increasing pressure on Pakistan from the USwith respect to the alleged inadequate implementation of the sanctions onJamat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed and entities linked to him.However, Pakistani officials, insist that the trip is a routine visit.
State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert had at a briefing on Fridaysaid that the US had clearly conveyed its concerns to Pakistan on HafizSaeed and called for his prosecution “to the fullest extent of the law”.She had recalled that Saeed’s name was on the UN list of designatedterrorists.
The US reaction had come after Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said ina television interview that, “there is no case against Hafiz Saeed sahib inPakistan. If there was a case, action would be taken. This is an issue thatcomes to the fore repeatedly but there is no truth in it”.
The terms of reference of the monitoring team for Pakistan visit are notpublicly known, but as per its general mandate it assists the 1267Committee in keeping an eye on the freezing of the financial assets oflisted persons and entities and checking provision of training and othermaterial to them and their travel.
The team intimates instances of non-compliance to the committee through itsreports. At the same time it also advises and assists member states onimplementation of the regime.
A Pakistani official gave a positive spin to the trip saying it would givean opportunity to share the steps taken by the government to implement thesanctions regime.
Pakistan has remained under the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) scannerover allegations by the US and India about the UNSC sanctions not beingfully implemented.
Mohammad Faisal summoned JP Singh and “condemned the unprovoked ceasefireviolations” by Indian forces. – Agencies