Lessons and challenges in sanctions as an anti-corruption tool
Online event: 31 May 2022
18:00 – 19:30 CEST / 17:00 – 18:30 (BST), 12:00 – 13:30 (EDT)
Event link
The introduction of wide-ranging and extensive sanctions against Russian officials, parliamentarians and business people in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has led to persistent calls for the confiscation of assets frozen under these sanctions and discussions around their potential reuse. Indeed, in discussing these assets, terms such as seizure have often been invoked and in some settings have been taken to mean that the assets are now able to be used at will by freezing authorities. The link between sanctions and anti-corruption investigations and asset recovery is, however, far from clear and the legal steps needed to go from the imposition of freezing order sanctions to the reuse of any assets that are found to be the proceeds of corruption are many.
While the scope of these sanctions is in many ways unprecedented, that sanctions have been imposed and that there are hopes for the recovery of the proceeds of corruption are not. Most famously, sanctions were imposed against the former leadership and associates of Egypt, Tunisia and Ukraine following their revolutions in 2011 and 2014 respectively. From this process and the ongoing attempts to recover illicitly acquired assets, several lessons can be learned and put to use as attempts are made to similarly move from Russian sanctions to anti-corruption investigations and recovery.
This online event will explore and discuss the likely challenges ahead and the steps needed to move forward from sanctions to recovery in jurisdictions implementing sanctions with respect to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Speakers
- Jackson Oldfield (CiFAR) – Welcome and introduction
- Clara Portela (University of Valencia) – Overview of sanctions as an anti-corruption tool
- Sara Brimbeuf (TI France) – Implementation of sanctions regimes: lessons learnt from the imposition of misappropriation sanctions in France
- Leanna Burnard (Redress) – Creative Routes to Asset Repurposing
- Maria Nizzero (RUSI) – Moving from sanctions to investigations: Challenges ahead with respect to Russian assets
- Raphaël Glucksmann (MEP) – Perspectives on challenges and opportunities for overcoming some of these challenges within the EU
Discussion by the panelists will be followed by a question-and-answer session.
Moderated by: Jackson Oldfield (CiFAR)
To register for this event, please visit our Eventbrite link here