Council of Europe publishes first Warsaw Convention thematic compliance reviews for Aruba and Morocco

The Conference of the Parties to the Council of Europe’s Warsaw Convention has issued updated thematic monitoring reviews assessing, for the first time, how Aruba (the Netherlands) and Morocco comply with selected treaty provisions on anti-money laundering, counter-terrorist financing and asset recovery. The reviews set out recommendations for both jurisdictions to address identified gaps against the convention’s requirements. The assessments cover rules on reversal of the burden of proof in confiscation proceedings, management of frozen or seized property, monitoring of banking operations as an investigative tool, the money laundering offence, corporate liability, international recidivism, postponement of suspicious transactions, and the sharing and return of confiscated property. Morocco’s review follows the convention’s entry into force in the country on 1 August 2022, while Aruba’s review follows the Netherlands’ decision to accept application of the treaty to that jurisdiction.