The Conference “Practical Application of EU Sanctions – State of Play and Way Forward”, organised by the Council of Europe’s Economic Crime and Cooperation Division in cooperation with the European Commission, Directorate General for Structural Reform Support (DG REFORM), marks the third hybrid activity in the joint EU – DG REFORM and Council of Europe project on “Effective implementation of the sanctions regime and enhanced cross-border cooperation in EU Member States.” This initiative represents the second Technical Support Instrument (TSI) effort dedicated to the topic of enhancing effectiveness of the EU restrictive measures against Russia. 

The Conference brought together over 50 participants, with representatives of the National Competent Authorities (NCAs) from 24 EU Member States, including Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Cyprus, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden, DG REFORM, DG FISMA and DG JUST of the European Commission, Europol, as well as the Council of Europe experts.

Participants engaged in fruitful discussions regarding key topics of the EU's comprehensive sanctions enforcement framework. In the first part of the Conference, discussions focused on enhancing ownership and control assessments, improving information sharing, and recognizing jurisdictional firewalls to promote transparency and cooperation, as well as on the expected impact of the recently adopted EU Directive 2024/1226, which outlines criminal offences and penalties for sanctions violations. 

The Council of Europe experts presented the results of the research previously undertaken regarding the role of NCAs and the current frameworks and effective application of the NCAs’ powers in identifying and freezing. Furthermore, the participants benefitted from the discussions on risk-based AML/CFT inspections and thematic onsite/offsite inspections to strengthen EU sanctions enforcement. Participants considered the requirements for development of robust compliance programs by the private sector, integrating KYC data for effective asset freezing and sanctions evasion prevention, in cooperation with NCAs. Finally, one session was dedicated to enhanced coordination among business operators, Financial Intelligence Units, and law enforcement agencies, supported by Europol’s Financial Intelligence Public Private Partnership representatives and insights from the Lithuanian Centre of Excellence in Anti-Money Laundering. 

As the project further progresses, the efforts will be focused on promoting the good practices of NCAs in both cross-border and national information sharing and access, as well as in addressing queries posed by EU business operators concerning designated persons. 

The event was organised within the framework of the Technical Support Instrument initiative “Effective implementation of the sanctions regime and enhanced cross-border cooperation in EU Member States”, co-funded by the European Commission’s Directorate General for Structural Reform Support (DG REFORM) and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe.