NEW DELHI: India has congratulated China for becoming the vice chair of the Financial Action Task Force(FATF), a global body mandated to combat terror financing, and hoped Beijing would “uphold and support” the objective of the watchdog in a balanced and objective way, according to Times of India.
In its plenary meeting in Paris on Friday, the FATF extensively deliberated on ways to combat terror financing and money-laundering but did not put Pakistan on its international terror-financing watch list. It gave Islamabad time till June to prepare an action plan against terror groups operating from Pakistan.
“Congratulations to China on its election as Vice President of Financial Action Task Force at the #FATF plenary mtg. on 23 February 2018. We remain hopeful that China would uphold & support the objectives & standards of FATF in a balanced, objective, impartial & holistic way,” MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted.
China, Pakistan’s all-weather ally, has repeatedly blocked efforts by India, the US and the UK in the UN to designate JeM chief Masood Azhar a terrorist.
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) was set up in 1989 with the primary goal of setting standards to combat money laundering, but in 2001 its mandate was expanded to include countering terror financing. It can take action such as financial restrictions against any country.