Pakistan signs $3 bn bailout package with UAE

Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates have signed a USD 3 billion bailout package to support the cash-strapped country even as its Prime Minister Imran Khan sought financial assistance from Qatar, media reports said.

According to the bailout agreement, signed in a ceremony in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, the UAE will deposit USD 3 billion in the State Bank of Pakistan to support the country's financial and monetary policy, Geo News reported.

The amount will be paid to Pakistan in three installments.

"UAE has formalized $3 billion deposit in the State Bank of Pakistan. DG ADFD & the Governor SBP inked the agreement at #ADFD Headquarters in Abu Dhabi," Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal tweeted.

The UAE had announced its intention to inject USD 3 billion cash into Pakistan via the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development in December last year, a month after Khan undertook his second trip to the country since assuming office, Geo reported.

The two countries earlier in January were said to have finalised the terms and conditions of the support package, which involves USD 3.2 billion worth of oil supplies on deferred payment in addition to the USD 3 billion cash deposit.

Imran Khan, during his two-day visit to Qatar that ended on Tuesday, met the Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani and other leaders to seek financial assistance.

In October last year, Saudi Arabia had agreed to provide Pakistan USD 3 billion in foreign currency support for a year to address its balance-of-payments crisis.