Lilia Carasciuc, Executive director Transparency International – Moldova, addressed a Statement to the High Level Conference dedicated to the X-th anniversary of the Eastern Partnership in Brussels, 14 May 2019:

“We celebrate today 10 years of EaP and there are real things to celebrate: signing AAs, DCFTA, free visa regime are achievements that are difficult to underestimate.

Nevertheless, corruption at highest level and lack of political will to seriously address this problem degenerated in some EaP countries in kleptocracy, plutocracy and state capture. The last ones, in their turn, affected the rule of law, democracy and free economic competition in our countries.

Multiple schemes of money laundering that took place in the last 10 years via banks in EaP and EU did not only affect EaP, they present a serious threat for the security of EU. In this context a new approach to the EaP is needed, an approach that helps us build a common security area and consolidate the values of transparency, democracy and accountability.

In these regards I would challenge the leaders of the EU institutions and the EaP country leaders with five proposals that will help EaP countries withstand corruption, contributing to the security of entire Europe:

1. EU needs to adopt ASAP a Magnitsky Act type of a document, apply it and require similar acts from EaP countries;

2. Currently a EU Prosecutor’s Office is being created and we salute its creation. But we also think that the jurisdiction of this institution needs to be extended over the countries that signed Association Agreements. Since we declared our will to become part of the EU, we need to get used to the European type of law enforcement;

3. Since multiple undeclared properties of some of our country leaders are held in European countries, including EU countries, we need an international agreement on the exchange of info on the assets abroad of our country leaders, members of governments, MPs, the information needs to be public;

4. We need a much more transparent system of Golden Visa programs in EU and EaP with a mechanism of verification of the legality of provenience of the assets of the applicants;

5. Giving creation of a number of crypto-currency mines by Russia on the territories of EaP countries that are not controlled by the EaP governance, the circulation of crypto-currencies being not regulated, this creates fertile soil for money laundering, funding propaganda campaigns, terrorism and other illegal activities. Europe needs serious policies to make many innovations, including crypto-currencies, for the economic development and not against our security. So, we need an united approach to crypto-currency.”