A new EU-funded Twinning project aimed at building asset recovery and management system has started in Azerbaijan. A team of experts from the Special Investigation Service (STT) and other Lithuanian law enforcement agencies will work to develop a legislative and institutional framework and set up a fully operational asset recovery body in Azerbaijan in line with EU and international best practices. The project implementation period is two years.
Last week the STT Director Mr. Žydrūnas Bartkus, the STT Deputy Director Mr. Egidijus Radzevičius, the Prosecutor General Ms. Nida Grunskienė visited Azerbaijan, and took part in the opening ceremony of the EU-funded Twinning Project “Support to the Reform of the Criminal Asset Recovery and Management System in Azerbaijan”. Representatives of Azerbaijani state institutions, the EU Delegation in Baku, international projects and organizations based in Azerbaijan also attended the ceremony.
Mr. Kamran Aliyev, the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Azerbaijan, gave an introductory speech at the event. He noted that the General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Azerbaijan attaches great importance to cooperation with the European Union through such instruments as Twinning, TAIEX as well as other effective programs. These projects and programs are very efficient tools for sharing the European institutional expertise, building capacity as well as learning the international best practices.
"This project is a clear example of initiatives implemented with the EU support. It is taking our cooperation with the EU to a qualitatively new stage. To date, the EU has made a significant contribution to the fight against corruption and illegal financial flows in Azerbaijan through various bilateral and multilateral projects. With the project that we are officially launching today we will take a multidisciplinary approach by targeting three interrelated elements: setting European norms and standards in the field of asset recovery, monitoring of compliance with the standards and capacity building of the responsible staff of the Prosecutor’s General Office" said Peter Michalko, EU Ambassador to Azerbaijan.
Mr. Žydrūnas Bartkus, Director of the STT and Project Leader, said: “Traditionally, law enforcement agencies seek to identify, investigate and punish perpetrators. However, many law enforcement officials are now realizing that this is no longer enough to keep crime from paying off. We are glad that Azerbaijan is on a modern way to find and recover criminally obtained assets. I believe that together we will achieve excellent project results."
He recalled that Lithuania already implemented a Twinning project with the General Prosecutor's Office of Azerbaijan in 2009-2011. One of the most important practical outcomes of that project was the reorganization of the Anti-Corruption Department under the Prosecutor General's Office of the Republic of Azerbaijan with the introduction of new, effective anti-corruption tools, and it helped the Department to function more efficiently and effectively.
A national Asset Recovery System will be developed within the framework of the new Twinning project. The system will include the development of an Asset Recovery Strategy, an Action Plan, drafting of new legislation and the amendment of existing ones. It is also planned to transform the Department for Coordination of Special Confiscation Issues at the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Republic of Azerbaijan into a national Asset Recovery Office, to strengthen the internal and international communication as well as to build capacity.
During the visit to Azerbaijan, the Lithuanian delegation also visited the Lankaran District Prosecutor's Office, the State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations under the President of Azerbaijan (ASAN Service), and participated in the meetings of the Steering Committee of the Twinning project and Scientific Advisory Board of the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
