European Commission recommends accession negotiations for Albania. Albania has continued to make good progress and demonstrated its continuous determination to advance on the EU agenda. This was one of the main findings included in the 2019 European Commission Progress Report on Albania. The Report highlights that Albania has delivered tangible results, notably on the conditions set in the Council Conclusions of June 2018 for the opening of accession negotiations, in a polarised political climate.

Regarding the country`s judicial system, the implementation of justice reforms have continued consistently, says the report laying the foundations for substantially strengthening the sector and consolidating independence, impartiality, professionalism, and accountability. Concrete results have been achieved in the re-evaluation of all judges and prosecutors. The Commission also notes that the institutional restructuring of the judiciary has continued as well. New bodies for the independent self-governance of the judiciary were established, triggering the subsequent formation of specialised judicial and investigative institutions to counter organised crime and corruption. The Commission also highlights the determined efforts in establishing a solid track record of proactive investigations, prosecutions and convictions in the fight against corruption and organised crime.

New Anti-Corruption Strategy for Armenia. According to news.am, the Ministry of Justice of Armenia has put into circulation a revised version of the government’s draft decision on approving the 2019-2022 action plan for anticorruption strategy and its implementation. Under the draft, the three main directions will be the prevention of corruption, the investigating of corruption crimes, and anticorruption education and awareness.

Working Group for Extractive Industries Transparency created in Azerbaijan. On 21 May, the Extractive Industries Transparency Commission (EITC), composed of newly appointed members, held its first meeting to discuss activities executed under the Roadmap for the Beneficial Ownership Disclosure, as well as EITC’s Activity Plan for 2019. The Working Group for the preparation of the EIT report 2018 will include representatives from EITC, civil society, local and foreign extractive companies operating in Azerbaijan.

National Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) to operate under the Ministry of Taxes. According to the Presidential Order of 30 May 2019, the Financial Monitoring Service (national FIU) will be operating under the Ministry of Taxes. The Order further requires compliance with international AML/CFT standards, including the obligations under the international treaties ratified by Azerbaijan.

Bosnians protest against corruption in judiciary after 'Bribe' Video. Hundreds of people have staged a protest in Sarajevo after a video emerged purportedly showing the head of Bosnia-Herzegovina's top judicial body negotiating a bribe. On 29 May 2019, The demonstrators in the Bosnian capital called for the resignation of Milan Tegeltija, the head of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council, which appoints, dismisses, and oversees the work of all the country's judges and prosecutors. The protest came after a video emerged last week appearing to show Tegeltija meeting with a businessman to discuss his case.

Cybercrime Gang that Stole $100 Million Dismantled. European and U.S. police have dismantled an international crime gang that used malware to steal $100 million from tens of thousands of victims, Europol said. The operation involved investigations in the United States and five European countries -- Bulgaria, Germany, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine. It said the gang used GozNym malware to infect the computers and capture online banking details of more than 41,000 victims, primarily "businesses and their financial institutions." The network laundered the funds it stole through accounts held by its members in the United States and elsewhere, according to Europol.

Kosovo*’s anti-corruption efforts inadequate, BIRN report says. BIRN Kosovo*’s new report, which highlights failings by the country’s courts and prosecutors in tackling corruption cases in 2018, was launched at an event in Pristina on 23 May 2019. The report, based on BIRN Kosovo*’s monitoring of 520 court hearings, found that there was a fall last year in the number of resolved cases, in verdicts that imposed effective prison sentences, and in verdicts that imposed fines or parole sentences. On the other hand, there was a drastic increase in acquittals and cases that were dropped. All these results show that there is deterioration in the fight against corruption in terms of the number of accused persons as well as in the number of verdicts resulting in punishment.

Director of the Anti-Corruption Agency calls for serious sentences for corruption. Shaip Havolli, Director of the Anti-Corruption Agency, is not content with the high-level corruption sentences. Havolli stated that low sentences or release is a negative signal towards Kosovo*’s development and integration in the international structures. “We are not happy with the sentences as those are negative signals. Several reports lately and many ambassadors, especially the American one, have given their remarks and warnings regarding the rule of law area,” concluded Havolli.

Civil society organisations say corruption in Kosovo* should not be condemned only by American Embassy. Civil society organisations, engaged in rule of law and good governance, have welcomed the reaction of the American Embassy in Kosovo* related to the failure of Kosovo* authorities on high-level corruption affairs. In the press communication of “Democracy Plus”, it is stated that many corruption cases are being processed, though some of them are closed.

Atambaev at risk as Kyrgyz Law allowing prosecution of ex-Presidents comes into force. Kyrgyz legislation under which former heads of state can be prosecuted came into force two days after ex-President Almazbek Atambaev stepped down from the leadership of the opposition Social Democratic Party of Kyrgyzstan (SDPK). The law that came into force on May 27 was ratified by President Sooronbai Jeenbekov in mid-May amid calls by some politicians for an investigation into decisions made by Atambaev, his predecessor, when he was in office.

The new law preserves immunity from prosecution for former presidents, but also states that prosecution is possible if they lose their formal status as an ex-President. Parliament can strip former presidents of that status if they are suspected of "especially serious crimes" by the Prosecutor-General's Office, according to the text, which was given final approval by lawmakers in April.

Chief Anti-Corruption Prosecutor resigns. The press officer of the General Prosecutor’s Office confirmed the resignation rendered by Viorel Morari, Chief Anti-Corruption Prosecutor. No reasons have been given until now.

Public criticises of on-going privatization of buildings. In the first months of 2019, several State-owned buildings in Chisinau were privatized at lower prices than market estimates. Examples are the canteen of the Government, a villa qualified as a historical monument and the Press House Complex. This information is part of a journalistic investigation launched by RISE Moldova.

Ex-Minister of Transport receives prison sentence for influence peddling. The Chisinau Appellate Court sentenced the former Minister of Transport and Road Infrastructure to three years and six months of imprisonment for influence peddling and abuse of power. Arrested in 2017, he also received a five-year ban from holding public offices. On the other hand, the judges rejected the prosecutor’s request to confiscate cash and luxury cars, which were previously seized.

Anti-corruption strategy: delay in the implementation of some projects. Launched in May 2016, the national anti-corruption strategy 2016-2025 consists of three phases. The first was to be completed by the end of 2018, but the latest implementation report shows that 30 out of 89 projects are behind schedule.

Morocco strengthens its strategy on the fight against corruption. The Instance nationale and the National Commission are seeking greater coordination to better target the priority programmes of the strategy to combat corruption. The summary report of the National Anti-Corruption Commission expects "a radical change" until 2021 as 91 projects have been announced for the upcoming two years with the aim of rising 17 places in Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index.

European Commission publishes North Macedonia Country Report for 2018. According to the European Commission’s report, North Macedonia has made good progress by further consolidating a track record on investigating, prosecuting and adjudicating high level corruption cases and through changes to the legislative framework. The Commission noted that the new legal framework for preventing corruption has improved and that the State Commission for Prevention of Corruption and Special Public Prosecutor have taken important steps to fight against corruption, including cases involving high-level officials. The Commission however, calls on the authorities to demonstrate that the fight against corruption is a national priority as corruption is prevalent in many areas throughout North Macedonia.

In the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism, the Commission states that further work is needed to align with the acquis. The Commission welcomed the newly adopted AML law which focuses on ultimate beneficial ownership and enhanced customer due diligence. Furthermore, while recognizing that some progress had been made in systematically conducting financial investigations, the Commission concluded that there is still a need to further improve coordination, operational capacity and the systemic exchange of data.

The Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare under scrutiny of State Audit Institution. The State Audit Institution (SAI) gave a double negative opinion on the annual financial report of the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare for 2017. They determined that the report wasn’t presented fairly and objectively in line with the financial provisions. Based on the audit, it was determined that the Ministry hasn’t shown the income of social centres and public institutions worth €989,000. Neither have they presented expenses worth €979,900, nor the deposits of these institutions. The SAI concluded that the Ministry didn’t use the funds in line with the Law on Budget and noted deficiencies regarding expenses for business trips and public procurement.

European Commission 2018 Country Report on Progress of Montenegro published. The report recognizes the steps taken by Montenegrin authorities to align legislation in the area of anti-money laundering, and limited progress in the area of anti-corruption policies and combating organised crime. However, it was underlined that further efforts are needed to establish a convincing track-record of processing and sanctioning cases of high-corruption and organized crime, as well as the cases of abuse of state resources for electoral purposes. A swift institutional reaction was sought for the “Envelope“affair from January 2019 and the “Recordings” affair from 2012, both of which involved violations of the Law on Financing of Political Entities and Electoral Campaigns.

Romania’s Schengen perspective in jeopardy over rule of law. The European Commission said on 13 May that Romania is close to being hit with Article 7 of the EU treaties, the heaviest punishment for a Member State deviating from rule of law fundamentals. Losing the chance to join the Schengen Zone any time soon would be one of the consequences. The Commission sent a letter to the Romanian President, Prime Minister and the presidents of both chambers of the parliament, on main concerns regarded judicial independence and the effective fight against corruption, including the protection of the financial interests of the EU. In particular, the Commission stressed the recent amendments to the country’s Criminal Code, which risk creating a de facto impunity for high-ranking officials.

Chief of Romania’s Ruling Party jailed for corruption. The head of Romania's ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD), Liviu Dragnea, has been jailed for corruption after his attempts to appeal an earlier conviction failed. Romania's Supreme Court upheld on 27 May a three-and-a-half year prison sentence against Dragnea. The politician, 56, was found guilty last year of having two party members paid by a state agency for fake jobs. Prosecutors said that by using his influence as a government official, Dragnea procured fake jobs at a child protection agency for two women working for his party.

The women admitted to working for the party while receiving salaries from the agency. Dragnea, who denies any wrongdoing, appealed the initial verdict and was allowed to remain free. The politician was a key figure in the PSD's push for controversial judicial reforms, which have chipped away at the independence of the courts, sparking mass protests in Romania and clashes with the European Union.

In 2018, almost 6 thousand people were convicted for bribes in Russia. The Judicial Department at the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation has published the latest data on judicial statistics on sentences for corruption crimes. According to the statistics based on the sentences of the courts in 2018, 2,167 persons were convicted for taking bribes worth more than 10 thousand rubbles [approx. 140 EUR], and 3,722 persons were convicted for “petty bribery” – less than 10 thousand rubbles. As a result, in 2018: 446 bribe takers were sent to prison, 305 were given a suspended sentence, 297 convicts were fined; 48 petty bribe-takers were sentenced to imprisonment, 35 got suspended sentences, 44 imprisoned, and another 1,987 people were fined.

According to the same statistics, more than 100 prosecutors and investigators were convicted of criminal offenses in 2018. 25 persons were convicted for receiving and giving bribes, 15 people were condemned for fraud.

Majority of Russian businesses do not consider Russia a safe place for business due to corruption. A survey conducted by the Federal Guard Service conducted for the Federal Business Ombudsperson Boris Titov which he presented to the President Vladimir Putin, showed that Russian business considers anti-corruption activities of the law enforcement structures ineffective and does not trust them. A total of 181 experts and 211 entrepreneurs in 37 regions were surveyed. Among experts, 69.2% do not consider doing business in Russia safe. According to the survey results in 2017, their share was 57.1%, in 2018 - 67.2%. Businessmen are even more skeptical about the prospects for doing business in the country - 84.4% consider it unsafe.

Lack of transparency and concerns regarding the new private jet of the Serbian Government. Questions are being raised on how a plane came to be in the possession of the Serbian authorities in the absence of documents attesting to its purchase, as well as possible ties between the acquisition and the sale of the state-owned enterprise Galenika. Currently no publically accessible information is available to explain the origin of the private jet used by the President and the Prime-Minister of Serbia for travel in the last six months. The plane, valued at $6 million, was previously used by the Brazilian company EMS S/A, who also won a tender to buy Serbia’s ailing drugmaker Galenika for €16 million. Serbia’s public procurement portal has no record of any public procurement procedure for the plane and the country’s Treasury Administration has no information on any payment being made by any Serbian state institution to its earlier user or the original owner. Requests for information filed pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act have been rejected by various authorities, including the Customs Authority.

European Commission notes mixed progress made in the fight against economic crime in Serbia. In the annual Country Report on Serbia, the European Commission concluded that there has been no measureable impact of corruption-prevention reforms. The Commission further notes that corruption is prevalent in many areas in Serbia and that law enforcement and judicial authorities still need to establish a credible track record of prosecutions and finalised high-level corruption cases.

In terms of organized crime and anti-money laundering, the Commission reported some progress over the reporting period, however underlined that its previous recommendations were only partially met and remain valid. The Commission notes that the recommendations emerging from the 2018 AML/CFT risk assessment are still being implemented. The Commission welcomed the establishment of the Centralised Record of Beneficial Owners within the Serbian Business Registers Agency, as well as improvements to the supervision of DNFBPs. The Commission also observed that in 2018, Serbia improved its legal framework relating to terrorism financing and proliferation financing and implemented a new mechanism for implementing targeted financial sanctions.

The Commission observed that there has been an improvement in the ability of law enforcement to carry out complex financial investigations in parallel with criminal investigations as a result of legislative reforms, but that Serbia has still yet to establish a convincing track record of effective investigations, prosecutions and final convictions in both organised crime and money laundering cases. Concerning the seizure and confiscation of criminal assets, the Commission considers that the numbers remain low and capacities need to be increased.

Truth and Dignity Commission suspected of corruption. Truth and Dignity Commission member confirmed suspicions of corruption surrounding the case of funds confiscated from former regime figures in Tunisia. Launched in 2014, the Commission is tasked with ensuring that justice is guaranteed in the country during its democratic transition. Suspicions include money laundering and misappropriating public funds during the presidency of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali with the complicity of state agencies. The numbers revealed are a fraction of the massive wealth the former regime acquired through the abuse of power.

European Union and Tunisia sign "EU4Youth" agreement on the economic, social and political inclusion of young Tunisians. The EU welcomed the progress made by Tunisia in meeting international and European standards in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing and will continue its support to this end and with the objective to seeing Tunisia exit the FATF and EU lists.

EU Commission’s progress report finds Turkey moving “further away” from the union. Released on 29 May 2019, the report noted a serious backsliding in the fields of democracy, economy and free market, particularly with regards to the independence of key economic institutions and the transparency of state aid. Citing severe restrictions to freedom of expression, assembly, and association, procedural and property rights as well as deterioration in prison conditions, the Report also criticised the erosion of human rights in the aftermath of the attempted coup d’etat of July 2016.

With regard to AML/CFT issues, the European Commission stated that Turkey needs to continue aligning its legislative framework and institutions with a view to complying with Financial Action Task Force’s recommendations and previous evaluations. The Commission noted that Turkey lacked a comprehensive strategy and action plan to fight money laundering and terrorist financing, though it reported that MASAK (Turkish FIU) has been preparing a comprehensive national risk assessment document in view of the upcoming FATF assessment. Furthermore, the Commission notes that law enforcement action for money laundering or terrorist financing offences was very low.

In light of the overall findings, the report ultimately concluded that EU accession talks with Turkey have effectively come to a standstill.

Anti-bribery management system of the NABU meets the requirements of ISO 37001:2016 standard. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine is the first law enforcement agency in Ukraine and one of the first law enforcement agencies in Europe and the world, which confirmed the full compliance of its anti-bribery management systems with the requirements of the international standard ISO 37001:2016. The NABU received the corresponding Certificate in April 2019.

The certificate is based on the results of a successful audit of the anti-corruption management systems of the NABU. The certification audit was carried out by PECB Group Inc. on the initiative of the NABU executives and with the support of the European Union Anti-Corruption Initiative in Ukraine (EUACI).

Ex-Commander of the National Guard detained on suspicion of 81 million UAH misappropriation. On May 14, 2019, the Detectives of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), under the procedural guidance of Prosecutors of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO), detained former Commander of the National Guard of Ukraine on suspicion of misappropriation of the property of the Main Department of the National Guard in the amount of 81.64 mln UAH. Executive director of real estate developer and real estate appraiser were also detained.