Watchdog listing worsens Pakistan’s pandemic fallout

Significance At a plenary meeting in October, the FATF urged Islamabad to complete a remedial action plan by February 2021. Previous threats to relegate Pakistan to a ‘blacklist’, which would put it at risk of sanctions, were noticeably absent. Impacts Pakistan will reach out to China, its most important partner, for bridging loans as it tries to keep the economy afloat. The opposition-led Pakistan Democratic Movement will play on popular discontent over the economy as it steps up anti-government protests. Islamabad will engage in back-channel diplomacy ahead of the FATF’s next plenary to ensure it retains support among the body’s members.