India on Thursday accused Pakistan of continuing to shelter terror groups and claimed that the country had addressed only 21 of the 27 points of an action plan laid down by global anti-terror financing watchdog Financial Action Task Force. India’s remark came amid the organisation’s three-day virtual plenary meeting, which began on Wednesday.

The FATF is likely to make a decision by Friday on keeping Pakistan in its “grey list”, according to the Hindustan Times.

At a press briefing on Thursday, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said that Pakistan had not acted fully on FATF’s action plan. “It is understood that Pakistan has addressed only 21 action items so far out of the total 27 points in the FATF action plan,” Srivastava said in response to a question about the possibility of Pakistan being blacklisted by the global watchdog. “Six important action items are yet to be addressed.”

Pakistan continued to provide a safe haven to terrorists and individuals, and has not taken any action against many proscribed by the United Nations Security Council such as Masood Azhar, Dawood Ibrahim and Zakir-ur-Rahman Lakhvi, Srivastava added.


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The foreign ministry official also said that the anti-terror financing watchdog had clearly laid out the standards and procedures for putting a country under scrutiny. He added that countries who do not fulfil their obligations have to face appropriate action.

The foreign ministry spokesperson also called out Pakistan for sponsoring cross-border terrorism and violating ceasefire. “This year, Pakistani forces have carried out 3,800 unprovoked ceasefire violations,” he said. “There have also been attempts to drop arms and ammunition across the LoC in the garb of civilian activities.”

Srivastava added: “We have also witnessed that Pakistan’s aid and abetment to cross-border terrorism, smuggling of arms and narcotic substances has spilled over to the international boundary, including through usage of drones and quadcopters.”

In February, FATF had decided to retain Pakistan on its “grey list” and gave the country four more months to achieve full compliance with its 27-point action plan to avoid being put into the “black list”.

Being on a blacklist of the financial watchdog has the potential to severely cripple and isolate a country financially, which could lead to a downgraded credit rating and denial of loans and developmental assistance.

In January, Pakistan submitted a 650-page review report to the global watchdog outlining steps taken by the country between October 2019 to January 2020 to implement the group’s recommendations.

India, which is a member of FATF, has repeatedly asked Pakistan to take necessary steps to meet international standards in stopping financial crimes.