Counter-Terrorism

Being a victim of terrorism, Pakistan attaches great significance to countering extremism and terrorism. Terrorism and extremism as a global phenomenon have affected almost every region in the world.  

Terrorism not only infringes upon human rights, but also negatively impacts the economy. From 2001 to 2022, Pakistan suffered a large number of causalities and incurred huge economic losses. The human cost of terrorism is devastating; its economic impact is even higher. This does not include the long term losses to the economy in terms of indirect or secondary impact of terrorism. 

Pakistan has taken several measures from time to time to successfully counter the menace of extremism and terrorism. This would not have been possible without relentless efforts and unparalleled sacrifices of the people of Pakistan. 

The policy and legal domain has also been further strengthened in the last two decades to counter the threat of extremism and terrorism. Counter-terrorism laws have been enacted such as Anti-Terrorism Act of 1997 and its Amendments, Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2010, and Protection of Pakistan Ordinance of 2013 with a special focus on all forms and manifestations of terrorism.   

Pakistan remains at the forefront of thematic discussions at United Nations, Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and other fora concerning terrorism and extremism. 

Pakistan also fulfils its international commitments under UN Charter by ensuring the implementation of UN Security Council Resolutions related to counter-terrorism. This includes UN Security Council 1267 (Al Qaida /Da'esh Sanctions regime) and Security Council 1988 (Taliban Sanctions regime). In this regard, Statutory Regulatory Order (S.R.O.) is regularly issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through its ‘S.R.O. Portal’ for imposing sanctions on the listed individual and entities. 

Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT)

Pakistan has a strong and robust Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) framework. It is compliant/largely compliant with 38 out of 40 Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendations, which places Pakistan in the top tier of countries.

Laws, policies, and procedures have been enacted in Pakistan to counter money laundering and terrorism financing. Pakistan has legislated Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2010 and Mutual Legal Assistance Act of 2020. Both of these laws have several preventive and internal controls to minimize the risk of money laundering and terrorism financing from Pakistan.  

Pakistan is a member of Asia-Pacific Group (APG), a FATF-style regional body. We engage constructively with APG and FATF to further strengthen the international standards of AML/CFT regime. 

Pakistan’s prolonged and constructive engagement with FATF has resulted in transformation of its financial and economic system. 

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