UAE extends repayment of $2 billion loan given to Pakistan

Dubai - Sheikh Abdullah met Shah Mehmood Qureshi and discussed issues of mutual interest.

The UAE has extended the repayment of a $2 billion deposit given to Pakistan by the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) in January 2019 to boost liquidity and help overcome financial crisis faced by the South Asian country.

ALSO READ:

>> UAE, Pakistan celebrate 50 years of exemplary relations

>> Pakistan FM lauds UAE for helping bridge $20 billion BoP crisis

This was announced on Tuesday following a meeting between Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Pakistan's Minister of Foreign Affairs, which took place late on Monday.

Islamabad was scheduled to repay $2 billion funds to ADFD by April 19, 2021.

A total of $3 billion lifeline was deposited by the UAE with the State Bank of Pakistan in January 2019 to help fill current account deficit gap and improve foreign exchange reserves to support Pakistan’s currency.

Qureshi landed in the UAE on Saturday on a three-day official visit and will fly out to Iran today as part of his regional visit. It is the Pakistani foreign minister’s second visit to the UAE in the last four months, reflecting growing bilateral relations and high-level contacts between the two countries.

Pak-UAE ties based on mutual trust

Sheikh Abdullah affirmed the depth and strength of relations between the UAE and Pakistan, which, he said, are longstanding and based on mutual trust and respect.

The two sides discussed the ongoing cooperation between the two countries to stem the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic, and ways of accelerating global synergy to address the impact of the disease and ensure the delivery of vaccines to all countries of the world.

Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, UAE’s Minister of State, also attended the meeting.