BY PAUL O’DONOGHUE, Senior Correspondent
THE European Union is considering adding Russia to its blacklist of high-risk countries for money laundering and terrorist financing.
European Financial Services Commissioner Mairead McGuinness announced the potential move during a session in the European Parliament.
She highlighted that EU anti-money laundering regulations dictate the process for such listings.
“Weakening Russia’s ability to pursue its illegal war of aggression against Ukraine is an absolute priority,” she stated, underlining that current anti-money laundering (AML) rules govern the process.
Adding Russia to the EU’s money laundering blacklist would mark a break from the Financial Action Task Force, the Paris-based agency which effectively sets international AML standards.
Ukraine has repeatedly requested that the FATF blacklist Russia, as such a move would make it more difficult to operate in financial markets and make it harder to fund its illegal invasion of the country.
However, the FATF has declined to do so, instead suspending Russia’s membership from the organization.
McGuinness said that while the EU’s money laundering blacklist prefers to align with the FATF, the FATF reaches its decision by consensus of its membership.
“The membership of FATF includes many BRICS countries,” she said, referring to the group of nations which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Iran and the United Arab Emirates. Many of these nations have reportedly been reluctant to blacklist Russia.
“We have been considering an autonomous listing, as is our prerogative under EU law,” McGuinness said.
The commissioner said that the EU is now carrying out an assessment looking at whether Russia should be blacklisted.
“It can be done only on the basis of robust evidence and a strong legal case,” she said.
“While I cannot prejudge the outcome of that assessment, it will be very thorough and legally sound.”
The EU’s list of high-risk jurisdictions for money laundering has previously been criticized for a lack of autonomy from the FATF lists.
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