ISLAMABAD: A single seat at the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), such as a vice president, does not have the power to place a country on the global watchdog's grey list, a London-based FATF expert, Arzu Abbasova told Pakistan TV Digital.
"No single seat, no president, or vice president can move a country into or out of the FATF grey list," Abbasova said during Pakistan TV Digital’s show South Speaks with Saqib.
She dismissed claims from Indian media outlets that New Delhi could use its newly appointed vice president to push Pakistan back into the grey list.
Abasova explained that countries are assessed through a detailed technical procedure that includes mutual evaluation reports and time to address deficiencies that are identified by the watchdog.
“If a country is identified to have certain deficiencies, then FATF gives them around one year of observation period to work on these deficiencies,” Abbasova said.
“If a country cannot work on these deficiencies or cannot make sure that all of the deficiencies are closed, then the ICRG comes into the conversation.”
The International Cooperation Review Group (ICRG) is the arm of the FATF that identifies and reviews countries with strategic weaknesses and places nations in the grey or black lists.
She said the FATF president and vice president’s mandate included chairing plenary sessions and setting the two-year strategic priorities, but held no unilateral power over individual country assessments, something she said was analogous to "a powerful microphone" without "a remote control."
Abbasova said that the politicization of FATF to meet certain countries’ agendas was an open debate especially when viewed from the outside without considering the internal mechanisms.
She cited Iran's 2016 blacklist suspension and its 2020 re-blacklisting as an example that may have seemed to track broader diplomatic trends. However, the expert cautioned that political motivation was largely speculative.
Abbasova also credited Pakistan's exit from the grey list in 2022, noting Islamabad completed two action plans covering 34 items, including amendments to more than ten laws.
She said the pace of reform and the political commitment sustained over several years stood out compared to other countries the FATF has reviewed.
"It has taken quite significant efforts to exit the grey list," she said.
