European Parliament Wishes to Expand Sanctions Regime to Cover Corruption

The European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee adopted a resolution calling for the European Union Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime to include corruption as a punishable offense. Unlike the sanctions regime to the U.S. Global Magnitsky Act, the EU's current regime lacks corruption penalties, a June 16 news release said. Parliament members “should also be able to propose cases of serious human rights violations, in order to increase the legitimacy of the sanctions regime,” the release said. “In addition, Members insist on an inclusive sanctions process to facilitate input from civil society.”