The Ukrainian parliamentary delegation took part in the meeting of the OECD Working Group on Combating Bribery in International Business Transactions (WGB), which took place last week in Paris.
The delegation from Ukraine was represented by the First Vice Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Oleksandr Korniienko, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Law Enforcement Serhii Ionushas, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Anti-Corruption Policy Anastasiia Radina, Representative of the President of Ukraine in the Verkhovna Rada – Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Law Enforcement Halyna Mykhailiuk, Deputy Chairmen of the Committee Maksym Pavliuk and Hryhorii Mamka, Chairmen of the Subcommittees Yuliia Yatsyk and Vladlen Nekliudov, members of the Committee Oleksandra Ustinova and Oleksandr Kunytskyi, MP Oleksiy Zhmerenetskyi. The delegation also included Denys Maliuska, the Minister of Justice of Ukraine, his deputies, Polina Lysenko, the Deputy Director of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, and representatives of the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (NAPC).
The purpose of the visit was to develop a draft law on criminal liability of legal entities for international bribery, as well as to learn about the experience of other countries in this area.
During the visit, a number of meetings were held with the Ambassadors of France, Italy, Romania, the Republic of Latvia to the OECD, the Head of the Italian delegation to the WGB, the Head of the OECD Working Group on Bribery, and the OECD Anti-Corruption Department to discuss the establishment of cooperation with the OECD Working Group on Bribery (WGB) in order to achieve Ukraine’s progress towards full membership in the Working Group.
Joining the OECD Working Group and implementing the Convention and relevant standards will have the following benefits:
▪️ improved cooperation with other states on the provision of international legal assistance and establishing personal interaction with representatives of the competent authorities of other states;
▪️ exchange of knowledge, experience and practices in the fight against corruption with leading countries
▪️ implementation of mechanisms to prevent bribery in business transactions;
▪️ implementation of mechanisms that will reduce the risks of corruption in the post-war period, in particular by transnational corporations and in the provision of international assistance;
▪️ fulfilment of the requirements for starting negotiations on joining the OECD and facilitating accession to the EU through compliance with the best anti-corruption standards.
The Chairman of the Committee, Serhii Ionushas, noted that such working visits are of great practical importance for the work of Ukrainian parliamentarians in developing relevant legislative changes, as membership in the Working Group on Combating Bribery will be an additional factor in the transparency of the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine.