EU Adds Saudi Arabia To Draft ’Terrorism Financing’ List

Local Editor

The European Commission added Saudi Arabia to a European Union draft list of countries that pose a threat to the bloc because of lax controls against "terrorism financing" and "money laundering", sources told Reuters.

The move came amid heightened international pressure on Saudi Arabia following the brutal murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The list has been updated this week, using new criteria developed by the European Commission since 2017. Saudi Arabia is one of the countries added to the updated list that is still confidential, one unidentified EU source and one unnamed Saudi source were quoted as saying.

A second EU official said other countries were likely to be added to the final list but declined to elaborate as the information is still confidential and subject to change.

A European Commission spokesman said he had no comment on the content of the list as it had not been finalized yet.

Saudi authorities did not immediately respond to the requests for comment.

The move is a setback for Riyadh at a time when it is striving to bolster its international reputation in order to encourage foreign investors to participate in a huge transformation plan and improve financial ties for its banks.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team