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MainActivityFunctionsNews Public appeal to the FATF in order to include the Russian Federation (RF) in the “black list” and...

Public appeal to the FATF in order to include the Russian Federation (RF) in the “black list” and exclude it from the membership in this organization

Dear members, observers and associate members of the FATF!

We are grateful to you for the efforts that are made by the FATF with your support in order to condemn and respond appropriately to blatant violations of international standards by the RF, in particular, systematic acts of terror committed on the territory of Ukraine, support for international terrorism and RF’s violation of the global sanctions regime.

At the summer and autumn FATF Plenary meetings, the SFMS presented Ukraine’s position with specific arguments regarding imposing sanctions on the RF. We appreciate all the introduced countermeasures against the RF on the FATF platform regarding the limitation of membership powers. However, the risks posed by the RF to the Global Network and the financial system’s integrity tend to grow and therefore require an adequate response, as stipulated by the FATF Mandate.

Russia’s recent intensification of brutal attacks on Ukraine’s civilian population by shelling apartment blocks, hospitals and causing large-scale damages to Ukraine’s power grids, leading to a “blackout”, has affected every Ukrainian. Two international organizations that took a tough and timely response to these criminal acts, were the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and the European Parliament. We would like to draw your attention to the following.

On November 21, 2022, the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, after the speech of the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, adopted a number of resolutions, which, in particular, called on the Governments and Parliaments of NATO countries to:

  • -        state clearly that the Russian state under the current regime is a terrorist one;
  • -        increase military, intelligence, financial, training and humanitarian support to Ukraine, and sustain this support for as long as it takes for Ukraine to prevail;
  • -        empower the FATF’s work on terrorist financing and parallel efforts by the IMF, the World Bank, the European Union, and the United Nations.

On November 23, 2022, the European Parliament overwhelmingly adopted a resolution to recognize the Russian Federation as a state sponsor of terrorism, where, in particular:

  • -        underlines that the deliberate attacks and atrocities carried out by the Russian Federation against the civilian population of Ukraine, the destruction of civilian infrastructure and other severe violations of human rights and international humanitarian law amount to acts of terror against the Ukrainian population and constitute war crimes; in the light of the above, recognizes Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism and as a state which uses means of terrorism;
  • -        calls for the EU and its Member States to develop an EU legal framework for the designation of states as sponsors of terrorism and states which use means of terrorism; calls on the Council to subsequently consider adding the Russian Federation to such an EU list of state sponsors of terrorism; calls on the EU’s partners to adopt similar measures;
  • -        calls for the EU and its Member States to take action to initiate a comprehensive international isolation of the Russian Federation, including challenging Russia’s membership of international organizations and bodies such as the United Nations Security Council;
  • -        calls on the Council to include the Wagner Group and the 141st Special Motorized Regiment, also known as the Kadyrovites, as well as other Russian-funded armed groups, militias and proxies, such as those active in the occupied territories of Ukraine, on the EU list of persons, groups and entities involved in terrorist acts (EU terrorist list). The resolution also urges all countries to terminate their relationships with companies affiliated with the Wagner Group and to comply with their obligations under international law by holding to account all perpetrators of grave violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law committed on their territory.

With its mandate to protect the integrity and transparency of the global financial system, FATF needs to heed the above calls. In addition, the FATF reaffirms its commitment to responding swiftly to significant new threats, including those identified by the multilateral fora (paragraph 6 of the Declaration of the Ministers of the FATF Member States dated April 21, 2022).

As stated in the FATF Public Statements on the Russian Federation (published in March, April, June and October), the FATF will continue to monitor the situation and consider the issue of the Russian Federation at each of its Plenary meetings

Ahead of the next FATF Plenary meeting in February 2023, we call on all FATF members to consolidate their efforts, including seeking technical arguments and materials relevant to the FATF Mandate, in order to provide a solid, adequate and fair response to the international terror that is spreading around the world through the terrorist regime of the Russian Federation.

The State Financial Monitoring Service of Ukraine expresses its full readiness to cooperate on this issue.

Sincerely,
Head of the SFMS
Igor CHERKASKYI