Ukraine Needs to Expand Asset Confiscation Mechanisms, Says ILI Expert on Ukrainian Radio
Ukraine needs to improve mechanisms for the confiscation and recovery of illegally acquired assets to make corruption economically unprofitable. This includes expanding civil confiscation and introducing new tools as part of Ukraine’s European integration. Andrii Klymosiuk, Project Manager at the Institute of Legislative Ideas, said this on Ukrainian Radio.
Commenting on the “Carthage” case, the expert stressed that it is important to assess not only the prospects of punishing those involved, but also the possibility of returning illegally acquired assets to the state. According to the investigation, the case involves the laundering of approximately UAH 80 million.
“We should not focus only on who has been imprisoned and who is serving a sentence. We should also ask: where are the assets, have they been recovered, and will the person be able to use these millions when they are released from prison in five or ten years?” Andrii Klymosiuk emphasized.
He identified civil confiscation of unexplained assets as one of the effective tools. At the same time, current legislation limits its application based on the value of the assets: if their value exceeds UAH 10 million, the case falls under criminal proceedings, which makes asset recovery more difficult and time-consuming.
“The state needs to calibrate or improve these mechanisms and allow civil confiscation to operate much more broadly. Perhaps we should consider restructuring the system altogether so that this threshold no longer exists,” the ILI expert said.
According to him, Ukraine also needs to implement European asset confiscation mechanisms, including those provided for by EU Directive 2024/1260. These include extended confiscation and the possibility of recovering assets transferred to third parties.
“It is not simply that we can adopt European experience – we are obliged to do so. If we want an effective system for recovering and confiscating criminal assets, these changes are absolutely necessary,” Andrii Klymosiuk concluded.