A code of conduct for Members of Parliament is set to be developed in Albania. Parliament’s Council on Regulations, Mandates and Immunities met to discuss the draft decision on the Draft Code of Conduct for Members of the Assembly of the Republic of Albania. Opposition stated that the draft needed some amendments, but Speaker Gramoz Ruçi rejected this proposal by responding that the opposition had not introduced any amendments and moreover they had to be tabled in advance. The Code of Conduct will be sent for approval to the plenary session of the Assembly.

Albania anti-corruption protest sees thousands rally for government resignation. Thousands supporting Albania's opposition took to the streets for an anti-government protest accusing the Government for corruption and for links to organised crime calling for its resignation. Opposition Democratic Party leader Lulzim Basha addressed supporters calling for “an anti-Mafia government that will fight organised crime, take the justice reform ahead in line with the constitution and prepare the holding of free and fair elections”. The rally follows the Democrats’ landslide loss in last year’s election, which saw them secure only 43 seats in the 140-seat parliament. The government has accused its opponents of attempting to hinder the talks by inventing a crisis. “The government is leading a firm fight against crime and corruption, the justice reform is on a good track,” declared the Prime Minister Rama.

Armenia establishes an anti-corruption body. During his speech at the PACE winter session in Strasbourg, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan announced the creation of a new anti-corruption body which was unanimously approved by the parliament last year as part of anti-corruption package. The newly established body, which according to the President meets all applicable international standards, will become operational from 2018 and its members will be elected by the Parliament. The President also informed about the adoption, within the same anti-corruption package, of the law on the protection of whistleblowers, and criminalisation of illicit enrichment. He stressed that Armenia is committed to continue consistent efforts to eradicate corruption.

Anti-Corruption Directorate reports on anti-corruption measures undertaken in 2017. In 2017 the Anti-Corruption Directorate under Azerbaijan's Prosecutor General completed the investigation of 214 criminal cases against 305 private and public sector officials and sent to courts for consideration. The statement was made by Kamran Aliyev, Deputy Prosecutor General of Azerbaijan, Head of the Anti-Corruption Directorate, at a press conference on 17 January 2018. He also named the most corrupted spheres in 2017 saying that the majority of the criminal cases investigated and submitted to court were linked to banking and non-banking credit organisations. “The private sector was the second in this respect.” added Aliyev.

Serious fight against bribery, corruption, bureaucracy is underway in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan's President, Ilham Aliyev, announced that a revolutionary change happened in sphere of public services in Azerbaijan in recent years. The statement was made during a conference dedicated to the fourth year of implementation of the state program on socio-economic development of regions of Azerbaijan in 2014-2018, held on 29 January. The head of state noted that the institutional measures are the most effective steps taken to narrow the space for corruption and bribery.

Draft Law on Investment Activity to be developed. For the purposes of increasing the volume of investment flows in national economy and improving business-investment environment and legislation on investments protection, the President of Azerbaijan has signed the Decree on “Some measures related to promotion of investment activity and protection of the rights of foreign investors” as of 18 January 2018. This Decree will also ensure favourable business environment for foreign investors which allows them to operate in accordance with internationally recognised standards.

Belarus' Investigative Committee interested in signing cooperation agreement with FBI.  During a working visit in the USA, Head of Belarus' Investigative Committee, Mr Ivan Noskevich indicated an interest in signing such document, pointing out that currently there are no written agreements between the agencies. According to Mr Noskevich, although in some cases cooperation between the two countries is possible in the investigation of criminal offences, especially in identification, freezing and tracing of proceeds of crime, and in confiscation and recovery of assets, on the basis of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and the United Nation Convention against Corruption, these conventions are not enough for successful bilateral cooperation in criminal investigations.

Cooperation between Belarus and the European Union discussed in Minsk. The discussions were held during the official visit of the European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy, Mr Johannes Hahn, to Minsk on 30 January 2018. During the visit, the meetings focused on the prospects of development of trade, economic and investment ties and the cooperation in international technical assistance. The parties also discussed the deliverables agreed at the Eastern Partnership Summit and the deepening of EU-Belarus relations. This will also be reflected in the new EU-Belarus Partnership Priorities which will define further cooperation for the coming years.

Indictments issued in Sarajevo to tackle corruption. In a recent case known as “Pravda" (Justice), Bosnian prosecutors issued indictments against 38 people, including a former Minister of Interior of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and eight legal entities for abuse of office, organised crime, money laundering, and other corruption related crimes. According to the Pravda indictments, the former Minister of Interior Alija Delimustafic organised a criminal group that had been illegally registering and selling real estate located in Sarajevo between 2009 and 2016. The accused allegedly made a profit of more than 10 million BAM (over 6 million USD) through these criminal acts.

Anti-corruption law passed. On 12 January 2018, Bulgaria's parliament has overturned a presidential veto on an anti-corruption bill, clearing the way for the creation of a unit to tackle high-level abuse. President Rumen Radev refused to sign the bill into law on 2 January, questioning its efficiency. The legislation entails the creation of a special anti-corruption unit responsible for investigating persons occupying high public office, as well as assets and conflicts of interest. The president has now no choice but to approve the bill, AFP news agency reports.

Bulgaria to pass EU anti-money laundering act. The Bulgarian Parliament is about to pass the Measures Against Money Laundering Act (the “Bill”) mandated by the EU’s 4th Anti-Money Laundering Directive, No. 2015/849 (4th AMLD) of 26 June 2015. Approved on its first hearing on 6 October 2017, the Bill will repeal and replace existing anti-money laundering legislation. Currently going through its second hearing, this Bill’s passage is considered a priority by the Bulgarian government since the deadline for Member States to implement the 4th AMLD was 26 June 2017.

Czech government resigns as PM fights corruption allegations.The Czech Republic’s minority government has resigned, plunging the country into deeper political turmoil, as its recently installed Prime Minister, Andrej Babiš, fights allegations that he abused an EU subsidy programme a decade ago. Wednesday’s resignation – a month after Babiš’ appointment – came a day after the government resoundingly lost a vote of confidence it had to win to stay in office.

Czech Prime Minister Stripped of Immunity. The Czech Parliament has voted to strip Prime Minister Andrej Babis of immunity, leaving him open to prosecution for fraud charges amounting to over US$ 2 million. Babis told lawmakers to revoke his immunity last week, Reuters reported. And he denies the fraud allegations against him and Jaroslav Faltynek, the deputy chairman of his ANO party. Babis is a billionaire—the second richest man in the Czech Republic—and faces police charges that he hid his company’s ownership of an upscale hotel complex so that it would qualify for millions of dollars’ worth of EU small-business subsidies. 

Czech republic considering adoption of Lobbying Act. Right before the general election, the Czech government approved a material proposal for the Lobbying Act. This piece of proposed legislation is supposed to shed light on otherwise “members only” process of legislation and government influencing. Last fall, the Czech government anti-corruption committee (“corruption committee”) finally introduced its material proposal for the Lobbying Act. The proposal is a result of the long-term efforts of the previous government to oust undesired influence and corruption from the legislative process. The anti-corruption committee, created by the Czech government as its advisory body, has designed various ways (some more radical than others) to approach the issue that, if enacted, could change how lobbying is conducted in the Czech Republic.

National Bank bans unregistered commerce entities to attract money resources from more than 20 Persons. According to the legal amendments to the Georgian Law on National Bank of Georgia, starting 11 March 2018 a company or a group of interconnected persons are banned to attract money resources from more than 20 physical bodies or take loans or/and advertise money resources to be received from a wide circle of persons.

Georgia joins EU state tenders’ search platform. Georgia has joined the European Union (EU) state tenders’ search platform that allows the user to search and analyze tender data from 35 jurisdictions. These jurisdictions include 28 EU member states, Norway, EU Institutions, Iceland, Switzerland, Serbia, Georgia and Armenia. 

Sanctions carried out on Jordanian Ahli Bank Cyprus for breach of anti-money laundering rules. The Central Bank of Cyprus imposed a financial fine of €352,980 on the Cyprus branch of Jordan Ahli Bank for breach of the anti-money laundering (AML) regulations. The bank supervisor, in process of examining the bank’s compliance with the anti-money laundering standards, discovered the failure of the bank to implement the anti-money laundering and terrorist financing rules, and specifically the fourth directive. 

New draft laws regulating the functioning of the judicial system. The Government has reviewed and adopted the package of laws regulating the functioning of the judicial system, including four draft laws on Courts, on the Judicial Council, on the Prosecutorial Council and on Disciplinary Responsibilities of Judges and Prosecutors. Moreover, the expected increase of the budget of this sector would lead to an increase of 300 employees in the court and prosecutorial systems. Main changes in the court’s system concern the extension of departments for administrative affairs in each basic court, possibility to establish new branches, mandatory publication of courts’ judgments, establishment of a division of the Court of Appeals in North Mitrovica and criteria for the judge’s mandate.

Government decision increasing salaries of Prime Minister and other senior officials raises reactions. On 20 December 2017 the Government decided to increase salaries of specific senior officials, including the Prime Minister, cabinet members, advisors, some other civil servants and judges and prosecutors bringing the number of beneficiaries at around 650 officials. Among different reactions against this decision, the Kosovo* Anti-corruption Agency issued an opinion arguing the existence of a case-by-case conflict of interest during the adoption and signature of such decision by those senior officials who participated in the adoption and signature of the contested decision by influencing and obtaining personal benefits from such decision. Following a request submitted to the Constitutional Court against this decision by 30 MPs, the Government decided to provisionally suspend its decision until a decision of the Constitutional Court on this issue.

Authorities’ plans to fight corruption in 2018. On 8 January 2018, the Kyrgyz President met the First Deputy Secretary of the Security Council of the Kyrgyz Republic. The meeting participants discussed the main activities of the Security Council secretariat, as well as security priorities and the work plans of the Security Council for 2018. The President ordered an analysis of decisions taken earlier by the Security Council aiming at evaluating their implementation, including the Decrees "On measures to reform the system of law enforcement agencies of the Kyrgyz Republic", "On measures to eliminate the causes of political and systemic corruption in government bodies”. The preparation for the forthcoming session of the Security Council of the Kyrgyz Republic was discussed in view of outlining the main directions of the fight against corruption.

Public consultation launched on the regulations on the hiring of integrity inspectors. In accordance with the provisions of the Law on Transparency in Decision Making, the National Integrity Authority (NIA) has launched the public consultation process on the draft regulation regarding the hiring procedures of integrity inspectors. NIA has invited the public to submit recommendations and suggestions by 2 February 2018. The draft regulation foresees hiring of integrity inspectors through a completion, transfer or promotion. The candidates will have to undergo a written test, polygraph test and an interview as a result of which a ranking list will be drawn.

Minister of Justice announces priorities of the Justice Sector Reform Strategy. According to the Minister of Justice, the restructuring of the legal system will be one of the main priorities of the new Justice Sector Reform Strategy to be adopted by the Parliament for the next five years. Staff reform will also be part of the agenda, with more focus on judges’ performance, qualifications and integrity.

Presidential elections announced. On 19 January the Parliament’s Speaker announced the date for the presidential elections, set for 15 of April 2018. He also sent invitation letters for observing the elections to international organisations. The opposition rejected the invitation for the consultations organised by the Speaker prior to the date-setting. At the same time the opposition called for a merge with the local round of elections in Podgorica and other 10 municipalities. Indictment brought against co-owner of the national Montenegrin electricity company

Indictment brought against co-owner of the national Montenegrin electricity company. The Special Prosecution submitted to the High Court an indictment against the management of the Italian electricity company A2A, co-owning the national Montenegrin electricity company (EPCG). The 4 persons involved are accused of abuse of office, as allegedly have defrauded EPCG in favour of A2A – through consulting companies granted to other Italian companies.

Morocco will participate in AU’s 30th Ordinary Session with the theme of fighting corruption. The African Union’s 30th ordinary session of the assembly of heads of state and government will take place on 28th – 29th January 2018 in Addis Ababa under the theme “Winning the Fight against Corruption: a Sustainable Path towards Africa’s Transformation”. Morocco is set to participate in the summit. The North African country made its comeback to the African body last year after 33 years of absence due to political issues over Western Sahara. Ministry of Justice of Morocco Drafts 61 anti-corruption Projects. “Corruption is a plague we must fight,” says Justice Minister Mohamed Aujjar, explaining that his department is working on 61 projects to combat corruption at the legislative and institutional levels.

Senior officials of the Moroccan Royal Gendarmerie were arrested on charges of corruption and drug trafficking. Within the scope of an anti-corruption investigation, 29 senior officials of the Royal Gendarmerie, including 5 colonels, were arrested. According to the news sources, the arrest came after a 20-day investigation conducted by the National Brigade for the Judicial Police (BNPJ).

«Morocco Spares No Effort in Combating Economic & Terrorist Crimes», says head of government Saad Eddine El Othmani. In a speech at the opening of the joint Middle-East/Africa workshop on typologies and capacity building to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, El Othmani underlined that Morocco has set up important initiatives to improve the legislative environment and consolidate the effectiveness of anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism measures, in accordance with international standards, conventions, agreements and the various Security Council resolutions on the matter.

GRECO publishes its Compliance Report on Romania. GRECO concluded that Romania satisfactorily implemented or dealt satisfactorily only with two out of 13 of its recommendations issued in the 4th Evaluation Round Report on corruption prevention in respect of members of parliament, judges and prosecutors. GRECO considered that the measures taken by the Romanian authorities to implement the recommendations were very limited and “globally unsatisfactory” within the meaning of Rule 31, paragraph 8.3, of its Rules of Procedure. The Romanian authorities are invited to submit a report on the measures taken to implement the pending recommendations by 31 December 2018.

Romania’s Constitutional Court on judicial reform bills. On 30 January, Romania’s Constitutional Court ruled that parts of the controversial judicial reform laws proposed by the Social-Democrat Party (PSD) are unconstitutional. The decision is a setback to PSD’s attempts to reduce the competencies of national anti-corruption investigative bodies, decriminalise some grant offences, eliminate the president’s role in appointing senior prosecutors and instead grant this power to the Senate, which they control.

EU executive's chief warned the Romanian government over judicial reform bills. The EU executive's chief warned the Romanian government on 31 January, during Klaus Iohannis visit to Brussels, to change its latest laws on the judiciary - or risk continuing the EU's current judicial oversight, and having the eastern European country's future Schengen membership put in doubt. Jean-Claude Juncker said if the parliament in Bucharest did not amend current legislation on the judiciary, it could be putting its Schengen passport-free future at risk. Romania would like the EU to take a decision on Schengen accession this year. Both Romania and Bulgaria have been a part of an EU's judicial oversight since they joined the EU in 2007.

Fraud tops Russia’s most frequently recorded crimes. Fraudulent activities were among the most frequently committed crimes in 2017, with one fraud registered every three minutes in average, according to the statistics of the Office of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation for January-November 2017. Whereas the overall crime detection rate across Russia was 54 %, clearance data for fraudulent activities was 25 %.

Prosecution demands a 10-year prison term for ex-governor. A prosecutor asked for a 10-year prison term and a 100-million-ruble fine ($1 790 000) for ex-governor of the Kirov region Nikita Belykh accused of taking bribes. Belykh’s defense asked the court to acquit him. In his final statement to the court, ex-governor said that his guilt had not been proven during the investigation or the trial. The court will return with its verdict on 1 February 2018.

Dmitry Zakharchenko’s lawyer sends an open letter to Vladimir Putin. Viktor Yemelyanov, who represents the interests of the family of the former deputy head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ Economic Security and Anti-Corruption Department, sent an open letter to the Russian President, stating that the trial of Dmitry Zakharchenko’s relatives and acquaintances as well the property seizures were illegal. According to Yemelyanov, former colonel’s family members are not civil servants and therefore do not fall under the anti-corruption legislation aimed at controlling incomes and expenditures of government officials.  In his letter, the lawyer is suggesting establishing a certain platform for public examination of the charges against Zakharchenko rather than asking the President to interfere in the case.

Newly Appointed Head of Anti-Corruption Agency is a Donor to Serbia’s Ruling Party. Dragan Sikimic, new director of Serbia's Anti-Corruption Agency, was a donor to the ruling Serbian Progressive Party and a candidate in the local elections in 2016. Sikimic’s name is among those 7,000 persons who donated 40,000 dinars each (approx. €320) to the Progressive Party for last year's presidential election, according to data from the Anti-Corruption Agency.

Amendments to Serbian AML legislation. The members of the Serbian Parliament adopted a new Law on the Prevention of Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism at the end of last year, which will enter into force on 1 April 2018. The new legislation is a continuation of the harmonisation of this area with the legal regulations and standards of the European Union.

Anti-Corruption Council: Illegal appropriation of state land. The government-run Anti-Corruption Council warned about dozens of thousands of hectares of state-owned land being given away to private entities without compensation, i.e. just based on a note issued by the Privatization Agency. The report has been published on the official website of the Anti-Corruption Council (www.antikorupcija-savet.gov.rs), and has also been sent to the Serbian government, the National Parliament, the ministries of economy, agriculture and interior affairs, and the State Prosecutor.

Council of Public Prosecutors elects new prosecutors. Four new prosecutors have been elected and three prosecutors from the old composition have been re-elected for another mandate for the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office for Organised Crime and Corruption by the Council of Public Prosecutors. The Prosecutors that were not re-elected will return to their previous posts in the prosecution. There was a reaction for the election of one of the new prosecutors, since she is the niece of the President of the Council of Prosecutor.

Council for the implementation of the New AML/CFT Strategy. The National authorities based on recommendations and expert’s advice provided by the EU/CoE Horizontal Facility Action against Crime prepared the new National Anti-money laundering and combating financing of terrorism strategy (AML/CFT Strategy) that was adopted by the Government. The Government also adopted at its 52nd session, the Decision on the establishment of a Council for Combating Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism, which will be responsible for monitoring and coordinating implementation of the National AML/CFT Strategy.

EU removes Tunisia from tax-haven blacklist. European Union finance ministers have agreed to remove eight jurisdictions, including Tunisia, from the bloc's blacklist of tax havens, one month after the list was set up. Ministers maintain that the jurisdictions have committed to making reforms that meet EU standards of tax transparency.

IMF concerned by Ukraine's new anti-corruption draft law. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has told the Ukrainian authorities that it does not support a draft law to create an anti-corruption court because it does not guarantee its independence. President Petro Poroshenko submitted a new draft law to parliament in December 2017. But the IMF mission chief for Ukraine, Ron van Rooden, has since written to the presidential administration to express the Fund’s concerns about parts of the bill. “Several provisions are not consistent with the authorities’ commitments under Ukraine’s IMF-supported program”…“In its current form ... we would not be able to support the draft law,” he said.

Deputy of the Odessa Regional Council was exposed on offering a bribe to the NABU Detective. On 12 January 2018, the Detectives of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) jointly with the employees of the Prosecutor General`s Office of Ukraine gave a notice of suspicion to the Deputy of the Odessa Regional Council and his alleged accomplice for offering 500 thousand USD of improper advantage to the employee of the NABU. The funds were offered to the NABU employee for terminating arrest of accounts of a Limited liability company, which was involved in a corrupt scheme of embezzlement of funds of the budget of Odessa city.

American Chamber of Commerce: Top obstacle remains rampant corruption. The latest survey by the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine showed that corruption remains the top obstacle to doing business in Ukraine. “Fight against corruption together with the creation of an Anti-Corruption Court remains a priority for 2018,” Andy Hunder, President of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine, said on January 29. “The business community’s expectations of eliminating corruption are seen a key to economic growth and a foreign direct investment attraction.”