EU May Add Russia to “Grey List”: What Does This Mean

Russia may join Venezuela and Monaco.

The European Commission is considering adding Russia to a “grey list” of countries with weak money laundering controls, the Financial Times reports .

It is noted that Brussels is thus seeking to increase financial pressure on Moscow. According to the publication, the inclusion of the Russian Federation in the “grey list” is supported by the majority of members of the European Parliament, but no decision has been made yet.

“There is huge support for Russia’s inclusion on the list,” said MEP Markus Ferber.

Journalists note that the presentation of the updated version of the “grey list” was expected this week, but the European Commission postponed its adoption at the last minute for “administrative/procedural reasons.” A representative of the European Commission expects its adoption next week.

The previous version of the Brussels list, seen by the newspaper, included Algeria, Angola, Kenya, Ivory Coast, Laos, Lebanon, Monaco, Namibia, Nepal, Venezuela. At the same time, it was planned to exclude Barbados, Gibraltar, Jamaica, Panama, Senegal, the United Arab Emirates, Uganda and Jamaica.

Representatives of the European Parliament’s parliamentary groups believe that adding Russia to the “grey list” will help convince MEPs to support it. According to the procedure, they can only approve or reject it, but not amend it.

Inclusion of a country on the European Union’s “grey list” causes reputational damage and requires financial institutions in member states to carry out additional checks when processing transactions involving entities or individuals from a country included in the list, resulting in increased costs.

(C)UNIAN 2025