As a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, democratic countries have significantly increased their efforts in the fight against international criminal networks of corrupt politicians who rob their countries and hide money mainly in the West. But kleptocrats have also become more resourceful, especially since some countries "don't ask too many questions," researchers say.
The United Arab Emirates and Turkey have drawn particular attention amid increased Western sanctions against Russia, said Jody Vittori of Georgetown University, who co-authored the study, "Kleptocratic Adaptation: Next Steps in the Fight against Kleptocracy," which was presented Friday, 20 January, National Endowment for Democracy (NED) in Washington.
As Vittori emphasized, both countries are listed by the International Anti-Money Laundering Group (FATF) "because they are actively involved in money laundering" and because their financial systems can potentially be used by terrorists.
"Not because they are potential channels of financing terrorism, but because their system is very open to it. We saw many yachts, planes and such landing in both countries. There are many indications that it was a relatively hospitable place, at least they don't ask many questions when Russian oligarchs and their money show up," says Vittori.
She adds that according to the Economist magazine, in 2021, Russians were in eighth place among buyers of real estate in the United Arab Emirates, and in 2022, when sanctions were introduced, they became number one.
As Vittori says, in the case of Turkey, this is a particular problem for the West, because this country is a member of NATO, and if the Alliance countries want to accept Finland and Sweden, Ankara has to approve it. On the other hand, Turkey helps Ukraine with weapons, it did not allow Russian warships to cross the Bosphorus to the Black Sea.
"Therefore, if we want, for example, to pressure Turkey so that it does not help the Russians avoid sanctions, this may harm the larger strategic goals of the West, including the defense of Ukraine," the researcher notes.
The situation is similar with the UAE - it is a strategically important country where American and French naval bases are located, says Vittori.
The United States is preparing to transfer to Ukraine the money of Russian oligarchs confiscated abroad - the American prosecutor
In connection with the war, which experts say is largely supported by the money of Russian oligarchs, democratic countries have felt the serious threat posed by dirty money, say Western researchers who study the fight against "transnational kleptocracy".
"The invasion of Ukraine somewhat confused the picture and, at least initially, changed the focus of attention of democracies that felt the threat of transnational kleptocracy. The invasion showed this real danger. It's gone from some nebulous substance that we're 'concerned about' to a real, leading issue,” said Matthew Page of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the study's second co-author.
Page, who has years of experience studying the ways in which corrupt politicians from Russia to Nigeria enrich themselves and hide their wealth, says that this year, too, the international kleptocracy has changed the schemes, the firms, the countries where they hide their wealth. But the effort and speed of the new measures by the world's democracies, according to Page, nevertheless caused, at least initially, some discomfort among "many of those kleptocratic actors, many of whom have become complacent after years of virtual impunity or relatively little pressure from democracies." .
As Page says, kleptocrats from authoritarian countries are constantly looking for new schemes to hide their looted money, and are ahead of not only law enforcement agencies, but also investigative journalists and representatives of civil society.
According to Page, Western countries have felt a strategic threat from global corruption - a danger "at the level of global climate change, or that posed by the rise of fascists to power in the middle of the 20th century." Because global corruption, in addition to the direct damage it causes, destroys democracy from the inside, undermines its foundations.
She adds that according to the Economist magazine, in 2021, Russians were in eighth place among buyers of real estate in the United Arab Emirates, and in 2022, when sanctions were introduced, they became number one.
As Vittori says, in the case of Turkey, this is a particular problem for the West, because this country is a member of NATO, and if the Alliance countries want to accept Finland and Sweden, Ankara has to approve it. On the other hand, Turkey helps Ukraine with weapons, it did not allow Russian warships to cross the Bosphorus to the Black Sea.
"Therefore, if we want, for example, to pressure Turkey so that it does not help the Russians avoid sanctions, this may harm the larger strategic goals of the West, including the defense of Ukraine," the researcher notes.
The situation is similar with the UAE - it is a strategically important country where American and French naval bases are located, says Vittori.
The United States is preparing to transfer to Ukraine the money of Russian oligarchs confiscated abroad - the American prosecutor
In connection with the war, which experts say is largely supported by the money of Russian oligarchs, democratic countries have felt the serious threat posed by dirty money, say Western researchers who study the fight against "transnational kleptocracy".
"The invasion of Ukraine somewhat confused the picture and, at least initially, changed the focus of attention of democracies that felt the threat of transnational kleptocracy. The invasion showed this real danger. It's gone from some nebulous substance that we're 'concerned about' to a real, leading issue,” said Matthew Page of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the study's second co-author.
Page, who has years of experience studying the ways in which corrupt politicians from Russia to Nigeria enrich themselves and hide their wealth, says that this year, too, the international kleptocracy has changed the schemes, the firms, the countries where they hide their wealth. But the effort and speed of the new measures by the world's democracies, according to Page, nevertheless caused, at least initially, some discomfort among "many of those kleptocratic actors, many of whom have become complacent after years of virtual impunity or relatively little pressure from democracies." .
As Page says, kleptocrats from authoritarian countries are constantly looking for new schemes to hide their looted money, and are ahead of not only law enforcement agencies, but also investigative journalists and representatives of civil society.
According to Page, Western countries have felt a strategic threat from global corruption - a danger "at the level of global climate change, or that posed by the rise of fascists to power in the middle of the 20th century." Because global corruption, in addition to the direct damage it causes, destroys democracy from the inside, undermines its foundations.
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