Tuesday, October 11, 2011
ANKARA - Anatolia News Agency
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=turkey-seeks-wider-cooperation-against-money-laundering-2011-10-11
Turkey plans to broaden international cooperation to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism, according to recent attempts by the country’s Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK), the Anatolian news agency reported.
Turkey recently asked German authorities to sign an agreement to combat money laundering used for financing terrorism in both countries, the agency reported yesterday. No agreement has yet been signed; Germany said preparations would take more time.
MASAK currently cooperates with Indonesia, Portugal, Sweden, Mongolia, Afghanistan, Georgia, Albania, Syria, Romania, Croatia, Macedonia, South Korea, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Japan, Ukraine, Norway, Jordan, Senegal, Luxembourg, Britain, Canada, Monaco, Finland and Belarus while it is currently in talks with the United States.
In as part of the MASAK agreements, the information provided by another country can only be share with third parties upon the approval of the actual source of information and only used for crime investigations.
Globally, money laundering accounts for nearly $1.5 trillion per year, according to United Nation’s figures. Moreover, the International Monetary Fund says money laundering is equal to 2-5 percent of global national income, representing up to $2.5 trillion per year.