External affairs minister Subramanyam Jaishankar, a former diplomat has taken to politics like a duck to water. Shedding decades of diplomatic restraint, Jaishankar in his new avatar as a politician, boasted of the tough stance the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken against arch-foe Pakistan.
Speaking to BJP members during an 바카라e-Chintan바카라바카라 workshop organised by the ruling party, the minister said that India played a significant role in ensuring that Pakistan remained on the 바카라grey list바카라바카라 of the Financial Action Task Force after its latest review meeting in June. 바카라Due to us (India), Pakistan is under the lens of the FATF and it was kept in the grey list. We have been successful in pressurising Pakistan and the fact that Pakistan바카라s behaviour has changed is because of the pressure put by India through various measurers,바카라바카라 the news agency ANI quoted Jaishankar as saying.
Generally, governments do not announce such things. There is quiet satisfaction in ensuring Pakistan is not off the hook, but rarely are such things ever disclosed. Pakistan of course was delighted as it had been claiming that the FATF has been politicised by India. They had a field day announcing we told you so. Successive governments have kept many such things under wraps. But the BJP loves to project an image of a strong country under a tough leader who is ready to fix India's enemies (read Pakistan not China) with a strong hand, unlike the timid approach of previous governments.
The Financial Action Task Force is a global watchdog on terror financing and money laundering initiated originally by the G-7 in 1989 and headquartered in Paris. It was set up to put pressure on nations aiding terror groups or drug cartels by encouraging them to take action. The FATA places nations into two lists. Those on the blacklist are countries thought to be non-co-operative by the inter-governmental group and those placed in the grey list are nations that are kept under watch and strict monitoring and asked to clean up their act. Pakistan has been on the grey list for a couple of years. Islamabad has been under enormous pressure from the FATF and has been forced to take action against several individuals and groups. During the June review, Islamabad was hoping to be out of the woods. Of the 27 recommendations of the task force, it has fulfilled 26 but was not removed from the grey list for not fulfilling a single criterion.
FATF President Dr. Marcus Pleyer had said that "Pakistan has made significant progress and it has largely addressed 26 out of 27 items on the action plan it first committed to in June 2018." Pleyer however added that the item on "investigation and prosecution of senior leaders and commanders of UN-designated terror groups" had not been fulfilled.
On Monday, Pakistan바카라s foreign office commented on Jaishankar바카라s comments reported by ANI. 바카라Indian statement not only exposes its true colours but also vindicates Pakistan바카라s longstanding stance on India바카라s negative role in FATF,바카라 said foreign office spokesman Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri. He went on to say Islamabad has always been highlighting India바카라s role to the international community in the politicisation of the FATF and undermining its processes. He pointed to Jaishankar바카라s recent address as 바카라just a further corroboration of its continued efforts to use an important technical forum for its narrow political designs against Pakistan바카라. 바카라While Pakistan has been sincerely and constructively engaged with FATF during the implementation of the action plan, India has left no stone unturned in casting doubts on Pakistan바카라s progress through disgraceful means,바카라 local newspapers reported the spokesperson as saying.
The statement said that Islamabad has been 바카라exposing India바카라s duplicitous role to the international community in the past바카라 and vowed that it will also bring the 바카라recent confession by India바카라 to the FATF바카라s notice. Pakistan is considering approaching the FATF president for appropriate action against New Delhi. Following the recent confession by the Indian Government, India바카라s credentials for assessing Pakistan in FATF as co-chair of the Joint Group are untenable. "We urge FATF to look into it,바카라 said Chaudhri. Luckily for India, Pakistan바카라s credentials on terror are so dismal that few are willing to accept its protestations.
