Pakistan has asked for IMF bailout to avoid an imminent collapse. In contrast to many African and South American countries, a collapse in Pakistan might have global consequences.
Pakistan, a nuclear state with at least 165 warheads ranging from short to medium range, is on the verge of economic catastrophe, according to Miftah Ismail, the country’s Finance Minister.
Pakistan has sought relief from international debt commitments and an IMF rescue arrangement, with an official inflation rate of over 13.37 percent (twice the official CPI to get a more realistic picture of genuine price inflation), the second fastest rising rate in Asia.
Initial negotiations with the IMF for a three-year pact began in 2019, but Pakistan claims the deal, which was originally worth $6 billion USD, is now ‘outdated’ due to the covid pandemic and new global financial challenges. The country now claims that it requires at least $36 billion to stay afloat.
Pakistan is expected to repay more than $21 billion in foreign debt in the coming fiscal year. It also faces significant food inflation and supply chain disruptions, as the government tries to import at least 3 million tons of wheat and 4 million tons of cooking oil to address shortages.
This is simply another illustration of how global inflation/stagflation is spreading, despite the fact that western media outlets are generally ignoring it. Countries like Pakistan, which already have bad economic conditions, are canaries in the coal mine, foreshadowing what is likely to happen in more prosperous first-world countries if current trends continue.
With globalist institutions such as the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, the Bank for International Settlements, the World Bank, and the World Economic Forum all forecasting major food shortages this year, the mainstream media has been strikingly silent when it comes to countries where the crisis is already spilling to the surface.
Pakistan’s instability is particularly alarming because it is one of nine countries in the world with a nuclear weapons (officially), not to mention a continuing border conflict with India that triggered two wars in 1947 and 1965, as well as a minor war in 1999.
As economic insecurity grows, so does public dissatisfaction and insurrection. As a result, political elites frequently promote war as a “release valve” for public rage and a diversion from economic hardship. Otherwise, the risk of massive civil disturbance is increasing by the day.
To be clear, Pakistan is not the only nation dealing with these issues; it is only one among many. In contrast to many African and South American countries, where the ramifications of inflationary collapse are limited to internal issues, a collapse in Pakistan might have global consequences.
Aside from the dangers of collapsing economies and regional conflicts, the IMF has become a go-to loan shark, circling weak countries when it scents blood in the water. It is not conspiratorial to claim that the IMF gains substantially as more countries confront reductions connected with inflation/stagflation.
As the world crumbles, more countries get enslaved by the IMF debt structure, until they are ultimately owned lock, stock, and barrel by a small group of banking elites.