Skopje, 22 January 2024 (MIA) — The goal of the US sanctions related to corruption is to see a change in the behavior of the individuals on the list and their associates; the US wants people to get used to using all tools available for fighting corruption and for the new government to maintain this commitment, US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs James O'Brien told a press conference held with Prime Minister Dimitar Kovachevski after the regional leaders meeting dedicated to the EU Growth Plan for the Western Balkans in Skopje on Monday.

In response to a question if he was glad that the Macedonian government had decided to incorporate the US sanctions into the national legislation, O'Brien declined to comment on any legislative processes of either North Macedonia or the EU, adding that the question of the US sanctions' role in the fight against corruption was somewhat complex.

There were strategies for solving the favoritism of a captive state and corruption, which were problems all around the world, not only in the region, O'Brien said.

He added he was grateful that the government had started a program to fight against corruption.

"A list is a list. It is always evolving," he said about the US Department of State's list of corrupt officials and other corrupt actors.  

"The goal is to see a behavior change in the individuals on the list and their associates," he said.

He added the list, which was a part of a larger strategy, could be expanded with new names or perhaps some names would be removed.

PM Kovachevski, asked when the proposed amendments to the Law on Restrictive Measures would be submitted the Parliament, said they were undergoing a process of alignment with current legislation and would be submitted immediately after.

The proposed amendments to the Law on Restrictive Measures, which would make it possible that sanctions imposed by the United States related to corruption, organized crime, terrorism, and hybrid threats be applied in the country and those designated be subject to sanctions according to local laws, were announced by Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani on Jan. 11.

Osmani said besides international security and democracy threats, the updated law would sanction corruption, abuse of office and hybrid threats.

Also, he said, after receiving evidence of such wrongdoing, the Prosecutor's Office would need to immediately launch an investigation and if the probe led to charges being filed in a court of law, the updated Law on Restrictive Measures would temporarily prevent the individual from holding public office or the company from participating in public procurement.

The US Department of State recently added on its "blacklist" several more familiar names, including former Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Kocho Angjushev, businessmen Orce Kamchev and Sergey Samsonenko, and Struga Mayor Ramiz Merko. They joined the already blacklisted fugitive former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski and the convicted former head of the country's Administration for Security and Counterintelligence Sasho Mijalkov.

Back in November, the government announced it was working on an initiative to change legislation so that the scope could be expanded to include US sanctions. mr/