Today, The President Unveiled His National Strategy To Internationalize
Efforts Against Kleptocracy, Pledging To Confront High-Level, Large-Scale
Corruption By Public Officials And Target The Proceeds Of Their Corrupt
Acts. This Strategy Is A New Component Of His Plan To Fight Corruption
Around The World. Public corruption erodes democracy, rule of law, and
economic well-being by undermining public financial management and
accountability, discouraging foreign investment, and stifling economic
growth and sustainable development.
Kleptocracy Is A Threat To The Governments And Citizens Of Both Developing
And Developed Countries. Corruption by senior officials in executive,
judicial, legislative, or other official positions in government can
destabilize whole societies and destroy the aspirations of their people for
a better way of life.
The President's National Strategy To Internationalize Efforts Against
Kleptocracy
This New National Strategy Builds On The President's Commitment Made With
The G-8 Leaders At Their Recent Summit In St. Petersburg. At the G-8
summit, President Bush committed to promote legal frameworks and a global
financial system that will reduce the opportunities for kleptocracies to
develop and to deny safe haven to corrupt officials, those who corrupt
them, and the proceeds of corrupt activity.
The Strategy Has As Its Foundation In The President's Proclamation, Made In
January 2004, To Generally Deny Entry Into The United States Of Persons
Engaged In Or Benefiting From Corruption.
The Strategy Advances Many Of The Objectives In The National Security
Strategy By Mobilizing The International Community To Confront Large-Scale
Corruption By High-Level Foreign Public Officials And Target The Fruits Of
Their Ill-Gotten Gains.
The Strategy Reaffirms The President's Commitment To Ensure That Integrity
And Transparency Triumph Over Corruption And Lawlessness Around The World,
Expand The Circle Of Prosperity, And Extend America's Transformational
Democratic Values To All Free And Open Societies.
Specifically, The Strategy Promotes Our Objectives By Committing To:
Launch A Coalition Of International Financial Centers Committed To Denying
Access And Financial Safe Haven To Kleptocrats. The United States
Government will enhance its work with international financial partners, in
the public and private sectors, to pinpoint best practices for identifying,
tracing, freezing, and recovering assets illicitly acquired through
kleptocracy. The U.S. will also work bilaterally and multilaterally to
immobilize kleptocratic foreign public officials using financial and
economic sanctions against them and their network of cronies.
Vigorously Prosecute Foreign Corruption Offenses and Seize Illicitly
Acquired Assets. In its continuing efforts against bribery of foreign
officials, the United States Government will expand its capacity to
investigate and prosecute criminal violations associated with high-level
foreign official corruption and related money laundering, as well as to
seize the proceeds of such crimes.
Deny Physical Safe Haven. We will work closely with international partners
to identify kleptocrats and those who corrupt them, and deny such persons
entry and safe haven.
Strengthen Multilateral Action Against Bribery. The United States will
work with international partners to more vigorously investigate and
prosecute those who pay or promise to pay bribes to public officials; to
strengthen multilateral and national disciplines to stop bribery of foreign
public officials; and to halt bribery of foreign political parties, party
officials, and candidates for office.
Facilitate And Reinforce Responsible Repatriation And Use. We will also
work with our partners to develop and promote mechanisms that capture and
dispose of recovered assets for the benefit of the citizens of countries
victimized by high-level public corruption.
Target And Internationalize Enhanced Capacity. The United States will
target technical assistance and focus international attention on building
capacity to detect, prosecute, and recover the proceeds of high-level
public corruption, while helping build strong systems to promote
responsible, accountable, and honest governance.
The President's Announcement Builds On Established U.S. Leadership In The
International Fight Against Corruption. The U.S. actively supports
development and implementation of effective anticorruption measures in
various international bodies and conventions. In addition to the G-8, we
have promoted strong anticorruption action in the:
UN Convention Against Corruption
OECD Anti-Bribery Convention and the OECD Working Group on Bribery
Financial Action Task Force (FATF)
Council of Europe Group of States Against Corruption (GRECO)
OAS Mechanism for Implementing the Inter-American Convention Against
Corruption
Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum's Anticorruption and Transparency
(ACT) Initiative
Broader Middle East and North Africa (BMENA) "Governance for Development in
Arab States" (GfD) Initiative.