The Asia/Pacific Group (APG) of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF,) an international anti money laundering watchdog, on the 23rd of August, blacklisted Pakistan.
The FATF put Pakistan in the enhanced expedited follow up list, also known as the enhanced blacklist, as the Country failed to meet the standards of the FATF.
During a meeting of the FATF in Canberra, Australia, the Group decided to blacklist Pakistan, after reviewing a compliance report submitted by the Country. The Group also reviewed the progress of the Country over the past 5 years.
However, Imran Khan, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, tried to blame India for the situation and said, “We tried really hard to normalise ties with India. But they [India] exploited the situation. They exploited the Pulwama [attack] for their elections. They have been lobbying to get us blacklisted by the FATF (Financial Action Task Force] as well.”
The Asia/Pacific Group, which is affiliated with the FATF, warned Pakistan about matters pertaining to terrorism and money laundering, however, Pakistan failed to meet the standards. Out of the 40 parameters used to decide if a country should or should not be blacklisted, Pakistan failed to meet 36.
However, Pakistan can still manage to remove its name from the blacklist before October, as in October, the FATF will release its final blacklisted countries.
The decision of the FATF came after warning Pakistan in June 2018. The FATF said Pakistan failed to complete its action plan for terror financing in June 2018. However, if it meets the commitments of the FATF, it could prevent Pakistan from being blacklisted.
Being blacklisted by the FATF is said to be a major setback for Pakistan as it will thin the Country’s chances of development and receiving foreign investors. Overall, it would affect the economy of Pakistan.
Stay tuned for further updates.
