US warns against IMF bailout of Pakistan

1 min read 31 Jul 2018, 12:42 PM IST Join us

PTI

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says there's no rationale for IMF tax dollars.

Pakistan needs about $3 billion in the next few months to avoid defaulting of loans from the IMF, China and the World Bank

Washington: The Trump administration today cautioned the International Monetary Fund (IMF) against a possible bailout of Pakistan. “Make no mistake, we will be watching what the IMF does," US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told CNBC in an interview.

He was responding to a question on reports that Pakistan was drawing up a plan to seek a $12 billion bailout package from the IMF.

“There’s no rationale for IMF tax dollars – and associated with that, American dollars that are part of the IMF funding – for those to go to bail out Chinese bondholders or China itself," Pompeo said.

The IMF has said that so far it has not received any such request from Pakistan. Pakistan needs about $3 billion in the next few months to avoid defaulting of loans from the IMF, China and the World Bank.

Pompeo said he was looking forward to working with the new government of Pakistan. “There’s a new leadership in Pakistan, and we welcome engagement with them in a way that we think will benefit each of our two countries," he said.

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