A crucial meeting of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) began in Paris yesterday. The plenary session of the FATF will take stock of Pakistan’s role in terror financing. A statement posted on the FATF website said that the session will review progress made by Pakistan and some other countries that present a risk to the financial system.
India will keep up the pressure on Pakistan to cut finances to terrorist groups, in particular seeking action against Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar and Lashkar-e-Taiba leader Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi. During the six-day meeting, more than 800 representatives from 205 countries, IMF, United Nations, World Bank and other organizations will focus on global action to follow the money that fuels crime and terrorism.
Pakistan was placed on the ‘grey list’ by the Paris-based watchdog in June 2018 and was given a plan of action to complete by October 2019 or face the risk of being placed on the watchdog’s blacklist. In its October meeting, the FATF had noted that Pakistan had addressed only five out of the 27 tasks given to it in controlling funding to terror groups. The intergovernmental organisation had asked Pakistan to complete its full action plan by February 2020.
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