There cannot be conditional talks on elections: Ishaq Dar
Federal Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Wednesday said that he had made it clear to President Dr Arif Alvi in his early morning meeting that talks cannot be held after putting conditions.
Speaking to Syed Talat Hussain in his SAMAA TV show Red Line, Dar said that there is no hesitancy from their side in holding talks.
“There can be talks on everything,” he said.
However, he said that there could not be any conditions attached to it.
“There has been inflexibility from the other side.”
Delayed IMF review
Asked about the delay in the ninth review by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Dar conceded that there had been an inordinate delay.
“By our estimates, at least the staff-level agreement should have been reached by now,” he said adding that in a week’s time, the west will go into holiday mode.
His comment implied that if the review does not take place next week, it would push the entire thing into January.
Dar, however, explained that the delay was not from their side.
He said that all the information that had been asked by the IMF has been provided and that Pakistan stands ready for a review of its economy and of conditions set by the IMF.
“‘Dull’ information is being sought and the matter is getting delayed,” a slightly annoyed Dar said.
