The attempt to question the scrutiny of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF)’s grey list is a reflection of its fear, India said at the global forum on Monday as it took a veiled dig at Pakistan, a name that has featured on the list in the past.
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Addressing a 2026 Counter-Terrorism Week side event, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Parvathaneni Harish, called the FATF an “indispensable” pillar of global counterterrorism financing.
“FATF’s work is technical, evidence-based and rooted in internationally accepted standards. Attempts to question its credibility often reflect fear of scrutiny rather than genuine process-related concerns,” Harish said, according to an ANIreport.
Pakistan had been on the FATF grey list since 2018 but was removed in 2022.
India urges ‘credible compliance’
In his remarks to the UN, the Indian representative urged those under FATF’s scrutiny to practice “credible compliance” instead of raising questions.
“The answer to FATF scrutiny is not politicised activism in UN forums but credible compliance. States that allow their territory, institutions or financial channels to be misused for terrorism must stop exporting instability and start fulfilling their obligations towards international peace and security,” Harish said, making a thinly-veiled reference to Pakistan.
India has long accused Pakistan of harbouring and financing terrorism. The Indian government has also always said that it doesn’t see terrorists and their financiers as separate entities.
“For decades now, my country, India, has confronted cross-border terrorism, and new digital technologies are only making the sources, the methods, and channels used for the flow of assets more complex,” Harish said.
Also Read:India to push FATF to add Pakistan to its grey list: Report
India also flagged concerns over the use of social media, technology and crowdfunding platforms in terror financing. “They have been sponsored, including by some state actors,” again, a reference to Pakistan.
The Indian representative backed FATF and said that the world’s response to terror financing should be anchored as per the global body’s standards.
India accorded FATF vice presidency
In a first for India, Union Culture Secretary Vivek Aggarwal was recently appointed Vice-President of the FATF for the July 2026 – June 2027 period. Days before this development, a report had said that India is expected to approach the FATF and seek Pakistan’s addition to the grey list again.
The ‘grey list’ of the FATF accounts for jurisdictions that are under increased monitoring. When a country is placed under this list, it means that it has “committed to resolve swiftly the identified strategic deficiencies within agreed timeframes and is subject to increased monitoring”.
At present, as many as 25 countries are listed under FATF’s “jurisdictions under increased monitoring”.
(With inputs from ANI).
