India welcomes Pakistan's placement on FATF grey list

India on Saturday lauded the decision of the Paris-based global Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to place Pakistan in its Compliance Document (Grey list) for International Co-operation Review Group (ICRG) monitoring.

Hailing the decision, India's official spokesperson said Pakistan failed to keep their commitment for countering terror financing and anti-money laundering in respect of the United Nation designated and internationally proscribed terror entities.

The official also expressed hope that credible measures would be taken by Pakistan to address global concerns related to terrorism emanating from any territory under its control.

"The freedom and impunity with which the designated terrorists like Hafiz Saed and entities like Jamaat-Ud-Dawaa, Lashkar-e-Tayabba, Jaish-e-Mohammed continue to operate in Pakistan is not in keeping with such commitments," the spokesperson said.

The FATF listing was done late on June 27 during a plenary meeting at which Pakistan's caretaker finance minister Shamshad Akhtar was present with a delegation.

The 37-member FATF's "grey listing" of Pakistan means that Islamabad's financial system will be designated as posing a risk to the international financial system because of "strategic deficiencies" in its ability to prevent terror financing and money laundering.

What is clear is that the FATF has not been entirely convinced by Pakistan's 26-point action plan to cut off funding for terrorists and groups sanctioned by the UN Security Council, and therefore, has gone ahead put Islamabad on its grey list for the second time in six years, the first being between 2012 and 2015.

The FATF has begun assessing Pakistan's action plan that will be implemented over a period of 15 months beginning next January. Reports suggested that Islamabad tried not to be included in the "grey list", but sources said a decision had already been taken in plenary meetings of the Paris-based global financial watchdog in February.