EU blacklist updated

SAUDI ARABIA AND PANAMA TARGETED BY COMMISSION Move criticised by many worried about economic relations, including Britain.

The European Commission added Saudi Arabia and Panama to a blacklist of nations it considers a threat because of lax controls on terrorism financing and money laundering, the European Union (EU) executive said.

The move is part of a crackdown on money laundering after several scandals at EU banks, but it has been criticised by several EU countries, including Britain, that are worried about their economic relations with the listed states, notably Saudi Arabia. The US has also disapproved.

The Saudi government said it regretted the decision in a statement published by the Saudi Press Agency, adding “Saudi Arabia’s commitment to combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism is a strategic priority”.

Panama said it should be removed from the list because it recently adopted stronger rules against money laundering.

Despite pressure to exclude Riyadh from the list, the commission decided to list the kingdom.

Apart from reputational damage, inclusion on the list complicates financial relations with the EU. The bloc’s banks will have to carry out additional checks on payments involving entities from listed jurisdictions. The list now includes 23 jurisdictions.

The commission said it added jurisdictions with “strategic deficiencies in their anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing regimes”. –