Romania’s Accession to the OECD: The Anti-Bribery Convention. The Italian Experience seminar took place on Monday at the Italian Embassy in Bucharest, with the participation of the secretary of state in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Luca Niculescu, informs a press release from the diplomatic mission in Romania sent on Tuesday, according to Agerpres.

The OECD anti-bribery convention represents an important legal instrument available to interested states to combat foreign bribery and ensure fair conditions worldwide in international trade and investment. As recognized by the latest report of the OECD Anti-Bribery Working Group, Italy promoted the implementation of the convention and contributed significantly to the efforts against corruption at numerous international levels, carrying out various „capacity building” programs, the release states.

According to the diplomatic mission, Romania’s path towards joining the OECD includes the need to develop a strategic approach for implementing the values and standards of the Convention against corruption. In this sense, the experience of Italy, recalled by the participants in the seminar, can represent an effective point of reference for the Romanian institutions.

As recalled by Lorenzo Salazar, deputy general prosecutor at the Naples Court of Appeal, „the long experience acquired by Italy in the sector of combating foreign bribery will support the process of bringing Romania closer to the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention and its Monitoring Group, in the perspective of the country’s accession to the Paris Organization”.

„The fight against corruption is a crucial challenge for the international community, which cannot be defeated without the active participation of companies in partnership with the public sector,” said Antonio Gullo, professor of criminal law at the LUISS Guido Carli University in Rome.

Italian ambassador Alfredo Durante Mangoni emphasized that Monday’s event contributes to the strengthening of relations between the two countries and „represents a special opportunity for the discussion and exchange of good practices in this sector, including in the light of the recent evaluation of Italy in the framework of the implementation of the Convention against Corruption of OECD”.

For his part, the national coordinator for Romania’s accession to the OECD, Luca Niculescu, reiterated Bucharest’s „firm” commitment to continue the fight against corruption.

The strengthening of the dialogue between Romania and Italy in the context of the OECD confirms once again the consolidated strategic partnership between the two states, the press release adds.

The secretary of state in the Ministry of Justice Mihai Pasca specified that this ministry is prepared for the evaluation exercise that will be carried out by the Working Group on Bribery. The representatives of the ministry signed the formal request for accession to the Anti-Bribery Convention.

Agerpres