Pakistan's Foreign Ministry Rebuts Indian Media Campaign to Sabotage Pakistan-UAE Financial Relations

Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a formal statement on April 10-11, 2026 rejecting what it characterized as 'false narratives spread by Indian media operatives' aimed at sabotaging Pakistan-UAE ties. The MFA dismissed as misleading reports circulating in Indian media claiming the UAE had frozen or withdrawn financial deposits to Pakistan over instability concerns. Pakistani officials affirmed the strength of the Pakistan-UAE strategic and financial partnership, pointing to continued UAE investments and the large Pakistani diaspora's remittance flows. The episode illustrated the ongoing India-Pakistan information rivalry in the Gulf: both countries compete intensely for influence with the UAE, which hosts a combined 3.5 million Indians and 1.5 million Pakistanis and has deep economic ties with both. India, which has built one of the world's most active bilateral economic relationships with the UAE through a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, was seeking to use its economic presence to offset Pakistan's political gains from the Islamabad summit. Pakistan's Foreign Ministry push-back reflected its sensitivity to any threat to Gulf financial relationships, on which Pakistan's economic recovery — including IMF debt servicing — critically depends.