Stop IMF loans to Pakistan, says pro-India lobby group

New Delhi: A US-based lobby group, which had once lobbied for a cut in aid package to Pakistan, has now opposed any International Monetary Fund (IMF) to Islamabad till it ends its support to terrorism.

In a letter to US Secretary of Treasury Steve Mnuchin, the US India Political Action Committee (USINPAC) has urged the stoppage of loans to Pakistan.

USINPAC claims credit for an amendment in the 2003 US Congress vetting of a $3 billion aid package for Pakistan that there would be no aid unless it stopped cross-border attacks. The amendment was later withdrawn but USINPAC was said to have demonstrated its ability to influence policy at that time.

“USINPAC is not against the people of Pakistan, or aid for education, economic development, women’s empowerment, etc,” said Sanjay Puri, Chairman of USINPAC, since its inception. “But we are against state-sponsored terrorism,” he added.

USINPAC termed the US



response as “generally apathetic”, amounting to little more than encouraging India and Pakistan to sit down and resolve their differences. USINPAC is calling for action–no IMF bailout for Pakistan until Pakistan bans and arrests its terrorist groups and militants.

It recalled that last year, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had warned against the IMF using American dollars to bail out Pakistan’s bondholders. “Make no mistake,” he had said, “We will be watching what the IMF does.”

“USINPAC will be watching, too,” said Puri. “When it comes to Pakistan’s track record of terrorism, IMF’s tool of economic surveillance is not enough. This is why USINPAC commends the Trump Administration for cutting off aid to Pakistan, and why we encourage the US Treasury to weigh in with the IMF. The US is the largest cumulative contributor to the IMF and should say no more bail-outs, loans or stand-by agreements until Pakistan changes course.”