MOSCOW, September 29 (RAPSI) – Russia has ratified the Council of Europe Convention on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds from Crime and on the Financing of Terrorism.

The relevant document has been submitted to the Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjørn Jagland, according to the Council’s (CoE) statement released on Friday.

The Convention will become effective in Russia on January 1, 2018, the statement reads.

The Council of Europe Convention on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds from Crime and on the Financing of Terrorism is an international agreement covering prevention and control of money laundering and financing of terrorism.

According to the Convention, “quick access to financial information or information on assets held by criminal organizations, including terrorist groups, is the key to successful preventive and repressive measures, and, ultimately, is the best way to stop them.”

The Convention was signed on behalf of the Russian Federation on January 26, 2009, in Strasbourg.

Ratification of the Convention would enhance the efficiency of Russia’s cooperation with other countries in anti-money laundering and combating the financing of international terrorism and provide additional features for development of international cooperation of competent authorities in laundering, search, seizure and confiscation of the proceeds from crime, Russian authorities said earlier.