Pakistan Had to Supply Weapons to Ukraine to get IMF Loan, What’s in for Sri Lanka?
Posted on September 20th, 2023
Dilrook Kannangara
IMF facility for Sri Lanka looks more and more like a bigger trap than a solution. Recent Pakistani experience shows there’s a lot more going on behind the scenes to get IMF facilities approved than what is openly discussed. USA as the largest stakeholder of IMF, calls the shots and never misses to exploit the poverty and desperation of countries going to the IMF with the begging bowl.
‘Bombs for Bailout’
According to many credible news reports Pakistan had to sell ammunition worth $1 billion to Ukraine to get its IMF bailout facility approved. It still does.
This includes various caliber artillery from 120mm to 155mm, multi barrel rocket artillery and explosive charges. All these are highly destructive offensive weapons. Until Pakistan supplied these weapons to Ukraine, USA withheld approving the IMF facility. As the IMF loans money in tranches, Pakistan will have to keep supplying weapons to Ukraine to keep it coming.
Tip of the Iceberg
However, Pakistan’s ‘bombs for Ukraine for the IMF bailout’ is just the tip of the iceberg. Pakistan’s anti-corruption and nationally-beneficial democratically-elected Prime Minister Imran Khan was thrown out of power by US meddling in Pakistani affairs. Yet another US-puppet regime was put in place instead. They were manipulated to supply weapons to Ukraine against Pakistan’s own national interests. Though USA preaches about democracy, it gives nothing for democracy when it comes to unduly benefitting from autocracy.
Pakistan landed in a debt trap due to Western commercial loans with very high interest, not due to Chinese loans. However, western media and western funded NGOs spread the falsehood that Pakistan was a victim of Chinese debt trap.
If Pakistan defaults on repaying loans, the biggest sufferer is not China as Chinese loans are smaller than loans due to pro-US lenders.
USA has killed fours Pakistani birds with one stone. It gets back loans and interest lent to Pakistan’s bankruptcy by entities in US military alliance countries, sinks Pakistan further into bankrupt by forcing it to repay these useless loans and getting more loans from the IMF, gets critical ammunition for the war in Ukraine thereby prolonging human suffering in that part of the world and turning Pakistan back into a terrorist-stan (as USA did once in the 1980s to support Mujahidin fighters in Afghanistan).
What’s in for Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka is in the same boat. USA and the Paris Club will not approve the IMF facility for Sri Lanka without a massive underhand deal to benefit them. Step one of having pro-US leaders has been completed long ago. Over 81% of Sri Lanka’s loans are from entities from NATO or QUAD military alliance nations. China has been falsely blamed for landing Sri Lanka in a debt trap but Chinese loans are only 8% of all foreign loans of Sri Lanka.
If Sri Lanka receives the IMF loan, things will not look better. After all it is yet another foreign loan that must be repaid with interest! The loan is given to arrange a closing down fire-sale of the island’s sellable assets in order to repay bond loans and other foreign loans due to entities in NATO and QUAD nations.
Like Pakistan, Sri Lanka will also have to create permanent powerful enemies, will sink further into bankruptcy, again create political and social instability and violence and become a permanent dependent suckling of USA and its military allies if Lankan leaders take the IMF poison pill. When will they finally come to senses that all foreign commercial loans are unsustainable – they simply cannot be repaid. Default on repaying them saves Sri Lanka from multiple traps laid by USA and its military allies. Learn from Pakistan and steer clear of the same traps that await Sri Lanka.