Ukraine urges FATF to blacklist Russia due to deepening relations with North Korea

This is stated in the message of the Ministry of Finance.

The reason for this appeal was, in particular, Russia's statement on a comprehensive partnership with North Korea, as well as the deepening of Russia's cooperation with Iran.

"Russia’s blatant violations have been on display for everyone to see. The Kremlin has been intensifying military and economic ties with North Korea and Iran, financing terrorist organisations inside and outside russia, weakening anti-money laundering institutions and sponsoring rampant cyber-crime. FATF has one clear way to counter these violations and provide protection to the global financial system – by blacklisting russia,” Minister of Finance Serhii Marchenko said. 

The officials reminded that this week the Russian Federation announced the formalisation of financial ties with the DPRK by creating "alternative mechanisms of trade and mutual settlements" to "jointly confront" the efforts of the international community aimed at limiting the destructive behaviour of both countries. In addition, Russia has stepped up its cooperation with Iran, a country under global sanctions and blacklisted by the FATF. 

"The Kremlin has provided Tehran with a backdoor to access the international financial system by interlinking payment systems to bypass SWIFT sanctions and opening state VTB bank branches in Iran. Russia has also been heavily reliant on Iranian drones to maintain its illegal invasion," the statement says.

The Ukrainian government also noted that Russia uses cyberattacks to attack critical infrastructure and the private sector of FATF member countries. And the suspension of Russia's membership in the FATF in February 2023 did not lead to a change in its behaviour. Moreover, the number and severity of violations has increased, creating additional threats to the global financial system and security. 

“Russia continues to grossly violate FATF's principles, by serving as a backdoor for Iran and North Korea to access the global financial system. Russia also attempts to hijack objective technical processes, from vetoing North Korea sanctions monitoring mechanism inside the UN to vowing to send delegates to the upcoming FATF plenary in violation of its membership suspension. FATF now possesses an overwhelming amount of evidence to support an escalation of restrictive measures against risks russia poses. Now is the time for decisive action,” the head of Ukraine's State Financial Monitoring Service said.

• The Russian dictator visited the DPRK this week at the invitation of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The countries signed a comprehensive strategic partnership agreement that provides for mutual assistance in the event of an attack on one of the signatories. At the same time, the DPRK leader expressed "unconditional support" for Russia in the war with Ukraine.
• Senators from both leading parties of the US Congress introduced a bill to recognise Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism after the signing of the Russia-DPRK partnership agreement.