Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have not withdrawn their $2 billion cash deposits that they provided Pakistan as loans. Both these loans matured in the fourth week of January 2021.
This indicates an improvement in lately-frosty relations between Pakistan and the two key Gulf nations, Express Tribune reported.
The move by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is also important, considering that the country had already withdrawn $2 billion out of $3 billion loans that it extended to Pakistan in late 2018.
In December 2020, with the withdrawal of $1 billion deposits, Pakistan’s foreign minister had said that KSA had to take this step due to a slump in crude oil prices.
At the moment, it is unclear whether KSA would also revive the $3.2 billion deferred oil financing facility. The kingdom had withdrawn the said financing facility in May last year.
On the other hand, the UAE has also rolled over a $1 billion deposit for another year.
UAE had disbursed $2 billion in loans to Pakistan, out of which the remaining $1 billion will mature in March. The newspaper report quoted sources familiar with the matter as saying that it could also be rolled over for another year.
In the meantime, Pakistan had made arrangements for repaying the remaining Saudi loan and has secured three different loans from China to return the Saudi debt.
Source: Propakistani