Pakistan this week reportedly won a three-month reprieve from being added to the list of countries supporting terrorism after a Financial Action Task Force (FATF) meeting in Paris.
FATF is a global anti-money laundering agency that works to combat financing of terrorists and money laundering.
Pakistan has however been scrambling in recent weeks to avoid being added to the list and sent Miftah Ismail, a special advisor to the Pakistan prime minister on finance, to plead their case.
But Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif said after the Paris meeting late Tuesday that “no consensus” on adding Pakistan to the list had been reached.
Asif said on Twitter that “no consensus (could be reached) for nominating Pakistan”.
Asif said Pakistan's efforts paid off and the convening states proposed a "three months pause" and asked for the Asia Pacific Group, which is part of FATF, to consider "another report in June".
"Grateful to friends who helped," the minister added.
In Washington however, a State Department official, said on condition of anonymity, that he could not confirm that FATF deferred action for three months, pointing out that the organization's deliberations are confidential until it makes them public.
This week’s meeting came amid mounting concern within the international community about deficiencies in Pakistan's anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing system even though Islamabad has begun taking steps to address the flaws, said the State Department official without elaborating.
Pakistan earlier this year submitted a report about the progress it had made in curbing terrorist financing, but Washington submitted its motion before the Pakistan report could be discussed at the Paris hearing.
According to official sources, Ismail visited Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands the week before in an attempt to garner support against the US move, India’s Economic Times reported.
Pakistan, if included on the list, would face enormous difficulties in terms of global money deals and foreign investors would face restrictions on their investments in Pakistan.
Three weeks ago, the United States proposed the inclusion of Pakistan on the list of countries sponsoring terrorists. The UK, France and Germany also came out in support of this move.
According to Afghanistan’s Interior Minister, Ahmad Barmak: “Those groups who use their soil (Pakistan's) for attacking our people and national interests and carry out massacres should be stopped,"
Over 700 delegates from FATF, as well as the United Nations, International Monetary Fund, World Bank and other partners, are attending the week-long meeting.
Pakistan had earlier been on the FATF ‘grey list’ from 2012 to 2015.