Islamabad, Oct 21 (UNI) The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), which is meeting in Paris, is likely to keep Pakistan on the grey list again, a news report said.
“Despite making progress on a new action plan having seven points, the FATF has not conducted an onsite visit, so the possibility of exclusion from the grey list is out of the question,” official sources told The News International on Wednesday.
The global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog has been scrutinising Pakistan’s compliance report on two action plans and a total of eight points in its ongoing plenary meeting held in Paris.
The FATF’s plenary meeting is likely to keep Pakistan on the grey list despite making progress on certain points, including amending the Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) law for ensuring international cooperation, it said.
The FATF plenary will be concluded on Thursday and the President of FATF will address a press briefing to announce the decisions.
Pakistani officials say that out of seven action plans placed by FATF, Islamabad submitted its progress report and claimed progress on all points. “We expect that the plenary will accept a few points and will declare compliant or largely compliant on a few of them,” the official told the Pakistani daily.
On the last point of the first action plan out of 27 points, Pakistan was asked to show progress on the prosecution against UN-designated outfits and their affiliated associates.
Pakistan has shared progress on this front in the past and this time shared the specific number of persons against whom prosecution was done. The FATF may not show its satisfaction over this point, it said
The FATF plenary held last July had kept Pakistan on the grey list and simultaneously handed over another action plan comprising a total of seven points to implement in order to avoid falling into the blacklist.
The FATF plenary is taking place under the German Presidency of Dr Marcus Pleyer. Delegates representing 205 members of the global network and observer organisations, including the International Monetary Fund, the United Nations and the Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units, are part of the hybrid meeting of the FATF Plenary.
UNI/RN