By Zahid Shah 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has finally moved closer to remove from FATF grey list as watchdog acknowledges completion of Islamabad’s Action Plans.

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has reviewed Pakistan’s progress on FATF Action Plans in its Plenary meetings held in Berlin on 13-17 June 2022.

In a statement, issued bu the Foreign Ministry said that FATF has acknowledged the completion of Pakistan’s both Action Plans (2018 and 2021) and has authorized an onsite visit to Pakistan, as a final step to exit from the FATF’s grey list. 

Pakistan has been on the global money-laundering watchdog's radar since June 2018, when it was placed on its gray list for terrorist financing and money laundering risks after an assessment of the country's financial system and security mechanism.

The US and India had reportedly tried several times to place the South Asian nuclear nation on the blacklist but Islamabad escaped four times with the support of Turkey, China, and Malaysia.

“The FATF members while participating in the discussion on Pakistan’s progress, congratulated Pakistan for completing both Action Plans covering 34 items, and especially on the early completion of the 2021 Action Plan in a record timeframe. Pakistan continued its relentless efforts towards successful completion of these Action Plans despite many challenges including the COVID 19 pandemic,” said the ministry.

Pakistan has covered a lot of ground in the AML/CFT domain during implementation of FATF Action Plans. The engagement with FATF has led to the development of a strong AML/CFT framework in Pakistan and resulted in improving  of our systems to cope with future challenges.

The Pakistan delegation, which attended FATF Plenary meetings in Berlin, was led by Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs / Chairperson National FATF Coordination Committee.