US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has welcomed the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s approval of a program to support Pakistan.

“We stand by the Pakistani people during these hard times,” Antony Blinken tweeted.

The US secretary urged Pakistan to continue working with the IMF toward macroeconomic reforms and sustainable economic recovery.

International Monetary Fund (IMF) Director has said the Executive Board of the IMF approved three billion dollars for Pakistan, Bol News reported on Friday.

“1.2 billion dollars has been released immediately to Pakistan,” the IMF director said adding that the programme would support efforts to stabilise the economy.

He said a stable policy implementation was important for Pakistan in the coming period. The program would be important to help and support the people of Pakistan, he said.

The IMF director said Pakistan was facing various challenges, hence it would need continuous reform. He said the IMF was always ready to work with Pakistan.