The 44th Plenary Week of the Eurasian Group on Combating Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (EAG) was held in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, from May 19 to 23. An interagency Russian delegation headed by Director of Rosfinmonitoring and EAG Chairman Yury Chikhanchin took part in the events.
The Plenary Week brought together around 300 representatives of EAG member states, observers and invited delegations. Among the participants were representatives of Azerbaijan, Iran, Mongolia, Nigeria, Serbia, the United Arab Emirates and the United States. International organizations represented at the events included the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism, FATF, the CIS Executive Committee, the Anti-Terrorism Center of the CIS Member States, the World Bank, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and the Council of Heads of Financial Intelligence Units of the CIS Member States, etc.
The EAG Plenary was held on May 22–23. It considered key areas of EAG activities and measures taken by EAG countries to improve their national anti-money laundering, countering the financing of terrorism and proliferation financing systems (AML/CFT/CPF).
The Plenary reviewed and approved progress reports on the AML/CFT systems of Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
Delegations of EAG member states reported on measures taken to prepare for the new round of mutual evaluations and implement the revised FATF Standards.
Participants discussed the upcoming supranational ML/TF risk assessment scheduled for 2026–2027. The assessment will provide a deeper understanding of current risks and threats in the Eurasian region and facilitate the development of effective mitigation measures. Its results will be presented at the 47th EAG Plenary in November 2027.
The Plenary approved the Information Bulletin on the Activities of Terrorist Groups in the Eurasian Region. The document includes a comparative review of terrorist financing methods in the EAG and Middle East and North Africa regions. Common sources and channels of financing include: cash as the main tool of storing and moving funds; informal systems and virtual assets used for cross-border transfers; and social messaging platforms used to coordinate activities and publish payment details for fundraising.
The Plenary approved the launch of a new project entitled “Use of Artificial Intelligence Technologies and Derivative Technologies as an Instrument for Financing Terrorist Activities and Methods for Using AI Technologies by Competent Authorities in CFT”. The project will be co-led by Russia, India, the Anti-Terrorism Center of the CIS Member States and the United Arab Emirates. It aims to strengthen efforts to counter terrorist financing involving the use of new technologies and to develop unified approaches to the digital transformation of AML/CFT systems.
The International Association of Training and Methodology Centers of EAG Member States and the Association of Press Services of Competent Authorities of EAG Member States presented reports on their activities in 2025.
The Eurasian Fund for Stabilization and Development was granted EAG observer status.
Among the events held during the EAG Plenary Week were the 5th Forum of Parliamentarians of EAG Member States, meetings of the Council of the International Network AML/CFT Institute and the Council of Heads of Financial Intelligence Units of the CIS Member States (CH FIUs), and the seminar “Experience and Practices in Implementing Updated FATF Recommendation 8”, etc.
