By Andrea Shalal
WASHINGTON, July 22 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met Pakistan's finance minister on Tuesday, welcoming the country's push to implement economic reforms and prepare for a return to international capital markets, Treasury said in a statement on Wednesday.
The statement did not address Pakistan's request for a $10 billion exchange stabilization facility, first reported by Reuters. Pakistani Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb delivered the request during the meeting, sources told Reuters.
He also met with U.S. EXIM Bank President John Jovanovic during his visit to Washington.
During his meeting with the Pakistani official, Bessent emphasized the importance of Islamabad's work to advance its reforms, become more economically self-reliant, boost growth and strengthen its economic resilience, Treasury said.
"Secretary Bessent welcomed the progress Pakistan has made in restoring macroeconomic stability and advancing fiscal consolidation, recognizing the government's efforts to implement significant economic reforms," Treasury said.
"Secretary Bessent expressed support for Pakistan's efforts to build greater economic self-reliance and commended the government's commitment to creating the conditions for a successful return to international capital markets," it said.
Pakistan has been hit hard by the Iran war, given its dependence on Gulf energy imports, remittances and financing support from the region.
The country narrowly avoided default in 2023 with a $3 billion IMF standby deal and later secured a $7 billion Extended Fund Facility, along with a separate $1.3 billion loan to build up its resilience to climate change and natural disasters. But its reserves still depend on official financing, rollovers and deposits from China and Saudi Arabia.
Islamabad's request for the bilateral currency stabilization fund comes after it stepped up to broker talks on ending the Iran war, which helped raise its diplomatic profile and earned praise from the Trump administration.
Following Aurangzeb's meeting with the EXIM chief, the ministry issued a statement welcoming the U.S. export credit agency's proposal to deepen ties, establish a multi-year transaction pipeline, and facilitate U.S. financing.
"Both sides agreed to identify near-term transactions, designate focal persons, and work towards finalizing the strategic framework, with a view to having it signed on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly session in September 2026," the minister said in a post on X.
EXIM confirmed the meeting took place in its own post on X, but gave no details about any U.S. financing plans.
"Chairman @JJovanovicUSA met with Pakistan’s Minister of Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb @Financegovpk to advance stronger economic cooperation and create new opportunities for American businesses to compete and win abroad," it wrote.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal in Washington and Gursimran Kaur in Bengaluru; Editing by Alexandra Hudson and Sonali Paul)
