FATF plenary to begin next week; Pakistan likely to exit 'grey list

It is important to note that a 15-member team of the FATF visited Pakistan from August 29 to September 2, and met officials concerned about the financial system of Pakistan, including the state bank, and finance ministry, after which it prepared an onsite report on the country.

New Delhi: The Financial Action Task Force plenary session is all set to commence in Paris from 18th October to 21 October, which is going to decide the fate of Pakistan. After four years of being placed on the Grey list by FATF for terror financing, and money laundering, Pakistan is most likely going to be off the FATF grey list.

According to sources, Pakistan is compliant on all 34 points in the FATF action plan, of which 27 points were related to terror financing and 7 points with money laundering.

The first Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Plenary under the two-year Singapore Presidency of T. Raja Kumar will take place on 20-21 October 2022. Delegates representing 206 members of the Global Network and observer organizations, including the International Monetary Fund, the United Nations, the World Bank, INTERPOL, and the Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units, will participate in the Working Group and Plenary meetings in Paris.

Delegates will discuss key issues including guidance on improving beneficial ownership transparency to prevent shell companies and other opaque structures from being used to launder illicit funds. The Plenary will also discuss a report on the laundering of illicit proceeds generated from fentanyl and other synthetic opioids and proposals to enhance asset recovery.

Discussions will also focus on jurisdictions identified as presenting a risk to the international financial system, with an update to public statements that identify jurisdictions as high risk or being subject to increased monitoring.

In its statement after the plenary in June this year, the FATF, in a statement said: "At its June 2022 Plenary, the FATF made the initial determination that Pakistan has substantially completed its two action plans, covering 34 items, and warrants an on-site visit to verify that the implementation of Pakistan's AML/CFT reforms has begun and is being sustained and that the necessary political commitment remains in place to sustain implementation and improvement in the future."

It is pertinent to note that a 15-member team of the FATF visited Pakistan from August 29 to September 2, and met officials concerned about the financial system of Pakistan, including the state bank, and finance ministry, after which it prepared an onsite report on the country. Founded in 1989 on the initiative of the G7, the FATF aims to combat money laundering, terror financing, and all threats related to terrorism.

Meanwhile, today, Oct 15, US President Biden termed Pakistan as the most dangerous country in the world which holds nuclear weapons without cohesion. He made the statement at a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Reception during which he criticized both China and Russia.

"This is a guy (Xi Jinping) who understands what he wants but has an enormous, enormous array of problems. How do we handle that? How do we handle that relative to what’s going on in Russia? And what I think is maybe one of the most dangerous nations in the world: Pakistan. Nuclear weapons without any cohesion.

So, folks, a lot is going on. A lot going on. But there are also enormous opportunities for the United States to change the dynamic in the second quarter of the 21st century", Biden said in a statement issued by the White House.

Reacting to his comment, former Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif said, "Pakistan is a responsible nuclear state that is perfectly capable of safeguarding its national interest whilst respecting international law and practices. Our nuclear program is in no way a threat to any country. Like all independent states".