Brussels, August 22, 2019 — infopulsetoday.com — Brussels will revive a blacklist of non-EU countries tied to money laundering after a previous version was blocked in February 2019 when it included Saudi Arabia and four US territories. The European Commission plans to publish the revised list in October 2019, using a new methodology developed with EU member states.
EU Justice Commissioner Vera Jourova announced the change in an interview with the Financial Times, saying the updated approach will name foreign countries that fail to comply with anti-money laundering and terrorist financing laws. The first blacklist, released in early 2019, named 23 jurisdictions.
They included Saudi Arabia, Guam, the US Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and Puerto Rico. None of these territories appeared on the international list maintained by the Financial Action Task Force, the global authority on money laundering. That discrepancy sparked immediate backlash.
Twenty-seven of the 28 EU member states rejected the initial methodology. The UK, Germany, and France led the opposition.
They argued the process was not “transparent and credible.” The list also drew sharp criticism from Washington. US officials called it politically motivated. Saudi Arabia exerted intense pressure on EU capitals to remove Riyadh from the list.
Jourova admitted the commission made a mistake. “The problem with the first list was that it was one size fits all but not all states are at comparable levels of risk,” she said. “So, I took all that criticism on board and now the experts are working on how to address this issue.” She also acknowledged the commission should have communicated earlier with the blacklisted states before publishing their names.
A new methodology with a grey list
The revised list will use a different set of criteria. It will categorize territories into two groups. One group will be the blacklist for non-compliant states.
The other will be a grey list for states that follow European recommendations but still pose some risk. The commission is working closely with EU capitals this time.
Jourova said the new methodology will be published in October. The goal is to avoid the political firestorm that sank the first attempt. The EU is under pressure to crack down on money laundering after high-profile scandals.
These include cases involving Germany’s Deutsche Bank and Denmark’s Danske Bank.
Political pressure and calls for expansion
The blacklist remains a politically sensitive tool. It directly affects financial institutions in non-EU countries. Some EU lawmakers want the list to go further.
Sven Giegold, a Green MEP, said the commission should not give in to political pressure. “While the list can be vetoed by the member states, it should not give in to political pressure and must expand to include Russia, Azerbaijan and the United Arab Emirates,” Giegold said.
The European Parliament has pushed to include Moscow in the blacklist. Russia has long been a focus of EU concerns over illicit financial flows. The United Arab Emirates and Azerbaijan also face scrutiny for weak anti-money laundering enforcement.
But adding these countries could trigger new diplomatic tensions. The EU must balance its enforcement goals with its foreign policy relationships.
Implications for the United States
The inclusion of four US territories in the original list angered Washington. The Trump administration viewed it as an unfair attack. The territories are not sovereign nations.
They are under US jurisdiction. Critics argued the EU was overstepping by targeting American soil.
The new methodology will likely avoid such direct confrontations. But the episode highlighted the EU’s willingness to challenge US financial oversight. The US has its own anti-money laundering framework.
The Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network sets standards. The EU list does not directly affect US law.
But it can damage the reputation of listed territories. That can hurt their access to European financial markets. The Trump administration will watch the October list closely.
A balancing act for Brussels
The EU is trying to shut down illegal money laundering within its borders. The scandals at Deutsche Bank and Danske Bank showed the problem is real. European banks have been used to move dirty money from Russia, the Middle East, and elsewhere.
The blacklist is one tool to pressure non-EU countries to tighten their laws. But the list also creates friction.
It forces the EU to choose between enforcement and diplomacy. The first list failed because it angered powerful allies. The second list must be more careful.
It must be transparent and credible. It must also be fair.
Jourova said the new methodology addresses those concerns. Whether it will satisfy EU member states and foreign governments remains to be seen. The October publication will be a test of the EU’s ability to act decisively without alienating its partners.
The commission has learned from its mistakes. It now knows that a blacklist without buy-in from member states is worthless. It also knows that listing US territories or Saudi Arabia carries political costs.
The grey list gives the EU a middle ground. It can name and shame without crossing into outright confrontation.
That may be the only way to make the blacklist stick.
