On Wednesday 3 December, the European Commission added Russia to the European blacklist of countries at high risk of money laundering and terrorist financing, following a process of assessing third countries not sanctioned by the FATF, but whose participation in work within the OECD has been suspended. Based on a well-defined methodology and incorporating information from the public domain, Member States and the European External Action Service, the assessment concluded that “Russia fulfils the criteria to be designated as a high-risk third country”, it said in a press release. “Russia has turned into a financial black hole, sucking in corruption, organised crime and countering sanctions”, said Markus Ferber (EPP, German). (MB)