24/07/2023 – Romania has completed the process to become the 45th Party to the Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions (the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention) demonstrating its commitment to transparency and the fight against corruption.
Today, Romania’s Ambassador in charge of OECD affairs at the Embassy of Romania in France, Adrian Cosmin Vieriţa, deposited Romania’s instrument of accession to the Convention at OECD Headquarters in Paris. Under the terms of the Convention, the Convention will enter into force for Romania in 60 days from today – that is on 22 September 2023.
When Romania joined the OECD Working Group on Bribery in International Business Transactions on 3 May 2023, it committed to taking the necessary steps to accede to the Convention.
“We very much welcome Romania as the 45th Party to the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention less than six months after being invited to accede. This Convention is the only international anti-corruption instrument focused on the supply side of bribery. As well as demonstrating Romania’s commitment to the fight against foreign bribery, this marks an important step on its path to OECD membership, aligning Romania with OECD standards and best practices,” OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann said.
As a Party to the Convention, Romania will undergo systematic peer-led reviews to assess its implementation of the Convention and the effectiveness in practice of its anti-bribery legislation and institutions.
The OECD Anti-Bribery Convention, which entered into force in 1999, establishes legally binding standards to criminalise bribery of foreign public officials in international business transactions. It also provides a host of related standards to support this commitment, on topics such as jurisdiction, sanctions, mutual legal assistance, and protecting investigations and prosecutions of foreign bribery from political or other forms of interference. Finally, by mandating peer-led country monitoring and follow-up, the Convention seeks to ensure that the fight against foreign bribery is effective.
Besides Romania, the other Parties to the Convention are the 38 OECD member countries plus Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Peru, the Russian Federation, and South Africa.
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