Council of Europe Office in Chisinau hosted the first first Steering Committee meeting of the project “Action Against Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing in Moldova”, implemented by the Council of Europe with the financial support provided by the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) of the US Department of State. It brought together national and international experts to address critical economic crime issues and the impact of the project for the Moldovan landscape.

The conference opened with welcoming remarks from Falk Lange, Head of the Council of Europe office in Chisinau, Samantha Sheen, Programme Manager of the Economic Crime and Cooperation Division, Council of Europe, and Bryan Schubert, Director of the U.S. Department of State’s INL program.

Head of the Council of Europe Office in Chisinau, Falk Lange, stated:

“The Republic of Moldova, as a member state of the Council of Europe, has consistently demonstrated its commitment to upholding the principles of democracy, the rule of law, and human rights. Addressing challenges related to corruption, money laundering, terrorism financing, and the financing of weapons of mass destruction stands as an important pillar in ensuring the sustainability of these principles.”

Samantha Sheen encouraged the participants to talk about the project and its challenges, while Bryan Schubert underlined the fact that the implementation of this project will involve a multi-faceted approach, including assessments, provisions of expert advice, legislative reviews, workshops, trainings, and roundtables such as this one.

“We anticipate that this project will significantly reduce the incidence of money laundering, will enhance the credibility of Moldova's financial system, attract legitimate investment, and contribute to the overall economic growth and stability of Moldova”, Bryan Schubert declared.

The agenda of the event focused on the implementation of Moldova's action plan to prevent and counter money laundering and terrorism financing. One key session addressed the transposition of the EU Directive 2024/1640, where participants discussed enhanced due diligence measures and new supervision mechanisms to combat financial crimes. Later, Walter Quirynen, a consultant for the Council of Europe, led discussions on asset recovery and confiscation. The event concluded with a session led by Jason Blazakis, focusing on the implementation of international sanctions regimes and procedures.

The conference laid the groundwork for Moldova's ongoing collaboration with the Council of Europe and international partners in its fight against economic crime.

This project aims to support Moldova's reform processes by providing targeted assistance in key areas and shortcomings identified by previous evaluations of MONEYVAL and focuses on aligning the country’s legislative, policy, and institutional frameworks with international standards, contributing to the prevention, investigation, prosecution, and recovery of illicit assets. It is closely aligned with the strategic priorities of the Council of Europe Action Plan for the Republic of Moldova (2021-2024) and the upcoming one for 2025-2028.