"FATF important to deter, stop inflow of funds to terrorist organisations in Pakistan": Former FS Shringla

Algiers [Algeria], June 2 (ANI): Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog, is very important to "deter and stop the inflow of funds to terrorist organisations" and also the Pakistan government's "utilisation of funds," said former Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla here on Monday.

Pakistan was included in the grey list in 2018 and removed from it in 2022. India has stated that it will leave no effort to bring Pakistan onto the grey list again.

India has sent seven political delegations to various countries to "project India's national consensus and resolute approach to combating terrorism in all forms and manifestations," following the Pahalgam terror attack and India's counter, 'Operation Sindoor,' against Pakistan-based terrorists and the terror infrastructure.

Shringla, who is part of the all-party delegation led by BJP MP Baijayant Jay Panda, underscored discussions on Algeria's influence in international fora like the UN Security Council and the African Union, expressing India's intent to counter Pakistan's potential misuse of its non-permanent UNSC membership amid India's global outreach in countering cross-border terrorism.

"The issue of terrorist financing was very much a part of all of our conversations. The leader of our delegation and individual members also explained that as long as Pakistan was on the grey list of the FATF, they were responsive; they were forced to be responsive and to the extent that Sajid Mir, a very wanted person under the UN Security Council's list, had been declared dead by Pakistan but when the FATF took up the issue and there was some serious financial pressure brought to bear on Pakistan, then they declared that he was alive. So terrorists who are dead have suddenly become alive thanks to the FATF. So the Financial Action Task Force is very important. It is important to deter and stop the inflow of funds to terrorist organisations and also the Pakistan government's utilisation of funds," the former Foreign Secretary stated.

The Indian government sources had said that New Delhi will send a detailed dossier to the FATF, outlining evidence and concerns regarding the involvement of certain entities and individuals in terror financing and money laundering activities. The dossier will highlight India's findings and demand strict scrutiny and action by the FATF under international protocols.

"The conversation was a lot about Algeria's actions in international and multilateral fora like the UN Security Council, where Algeria is currently a member, and the African Union, where Algeria exercises significant influence as the second-largest economy in Africa. And as a member of the OIC, also their influence on the Financial Action Task Force for the FATF process... We also pointed out to them that in the past, when we were members of the UN Security Council, we had been receptive and had worked closely with the Algerian delegation and that we would like to ensure that Pakistan does not take advantage of its current membership as a non-permanent member of the Security Council, which can influence the outcomes of the Security Council in any way detrimental to India's interests," Shringla elaborated on the delegation's discussions with their Algerian government.

Reflecting on the visit's success, Shringla added, "I think the Algerian leg of the visit was very, very successful from our point of view. We had some very good interactions with the Algerian government representatives, but also with media, think tanks, friends of India, officials from the Algerian government and the Indian community. As far as the government is concerned, the chair of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs of Algeria conveyed at the end of a fairly long and satisfying meeting."

The delegation, led by BJP MP Baijayant Panda, also includes BJP MPs Nishikant Dubey, Phangnon Konyak and Rekha Sharma; AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi; MP Satnam Singh Sandhu and Ghulam Nabi Azad.

The delegation aims to brief international partners on India's response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack and its broader fight against cross-border terrorism while engaging with leaders in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Algeria. (ANI)

(The story has come from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by the Tribune Staff.)