- Saturday, May 10, 2025
India’s executive director at the IMF will put forward the country’s position that Pakistan has been diverting funds towards terror financing
By: India Weekly
AFTER aiming at terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir, India has made it clear that it is working towards stalling the crucial IMF aid to the cash-strapped country.
Pakistan will face a critical review of its financing facilities at a crucial board meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington on Friday (9).
New Delhi on Thursday urged the IMF board members to look “deep within” and take facts into account before generously bailing out Pakistan.
Foreign secretary Vikram Misri said India’s executive director at the IMF will put forward the country’s position during the meeting of the board of the global body.
“I’m sure that our executive director will put forward India’s position,” he said at a media briefing.
“The decisions of the board are a different matter…But I think the case with regard to Pakistan should be self-evident to those people who generously open their pockets to bail out this country,” he said.
Misri noted that many of the 24 bailout packages sanctioned by the IMF for Pakistan had not reached a successful conclusion.
Pakistan will face stiff opposition from India for diversion of funds towards terror financing in the backdrop of the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22.
Pakistan has termed India’s move as “politically motivated” and aimed to isolate it diplomatically.
The country is riddled with high foreign debt coupled with low foreign exchange reserves, and has been grappling with an almost perennial balance of payment crisis and high inflation in recent years.
Earlier this week, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has made a strong pitch to ADB to stop giving funds to Pakistan as it backs and supports terror activities, sources said.
During her bilateral meeting with ADB President Masato Kanda in Milan, Italy, Sitharaman urged the agency to put a check on funding to Pakistan, the sources said.
As of December 31, 2024, ADB has committed 764 public sector loans, grants, and technical assistance totalling $43.4 billion to Pakistan.
ADB’s current sovereign portfolio in Pakistan includes 53 loans and 3 grants worth $9.13 billion.
According to sources, Sitharaman made similar pitch during her bilateral meeting with Italian Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti. Italy is the chair of 58th ADB Annual meeting.
India has been asking global multilateral agencies to have a relook at funds and loans provided to Pakistan, as New Delhi seeks to corner it diplomatically and at various international forums following the dastardly terror attack in Pahalgam last month, which killed 26 tourists.
