Wed/Thu25/26Jul - LONDON - the war on terrorist financing

[moeen yaseen]

THE WAR ON TERRORIST FINANCING : FORGING AN EFFECTIVE INTERNATIONAL ARCHITECTURE l
09:00, 25 - 26 Jul 2007
RUSI, Whitehall, London, SW1A 2ET

About the event:

The War on Terrorist Financing: Forging an Effective International Architecture

Wednesday and Thursday
25 - 26 July 2007

RUSI, 61 Whitehall, London

Money is the backbone of international terrorism. It is the lifeblood by which terrorist organisations are able to propagate their extremist ideologies, train members, procure materials and carry out attacks. Whilst the actual attacks of 9/11 are thought to have cost only $400,000, the US Commission into 9/11 has assessed that Al-Qaeda spent approximately $30 million per year prior to its attacks in order to fund its general operations, and maintain its training apparatus and organisation.

The globalised financial system has provided a mechanism for the free flow of international trade and investment, but it has also provided a means for terrorists to finance their operations. Funds may be being raised in one country, for training in a second, procurement in a third, and for the execution of attacks in a fourth. Combating terrorist financing is therefore a global challenge, requiring a global response.

Terrorist organizations have shown great ability to adapt and evolve to the measures taken to curtail their funding. New trends in terrorist financing have emerged. This has created new challenges both for governments tasked to protect the security of their citizens and for international finance centres, such as the City of London, which rely on their international reputation for integrity.

In an effort to meet these challenges, the UK has promised to use its Presidency of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the intergovernmental policy making body established by the G7, from July 2007, to hold to account those countries who are undermining the international effort through insufficient terrorist financing controls. Furthermore, the UK government, in February, launched a comprehensive new strategy for using financial measures to deter, detect, and disrupt terrorist financing. Included in this strategy are reforms implementing a more rigorous approach to reporting suspicious financial activity, a risk-based approach to tackling terrorist financing, and forensic accounting techniques to identify terrorist networks and prosecute their members.

This conference will bring together senior officials from the Treasury, Home Office, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA), and others, to explore the actions being taken to combat terrorist financing and the implications of the latest initiatives for the financial services sector and the City of London.

Conference Objective:

Analyse the evolution of terrorist financing in the years since 9/11
Assess international efforts to combat the financing of terrorism
Explore the actions being taken by governments in the Middle East
Examine the UK’s new Counter-Terrorist Financing Strategy and the implications that this has for the financial services sector and the City of London
Conference Sessions Include:

The Financial War on Terrorism: Forging an Effective International Architecture
Macro-Economic Analysis of Terrorist Financing: New Methods and Trends
State Responses in the Middle East and North Africa
Terrorist Financing in the European Banking System
The International Front in the Financial War on Terrorism
Uncovering the Complex Networks of Terrorist Financing
Developing Data-Sharing Between Public and Private Sectors
For sponsorship and further programme information please call Mark Thomas on + 44(0) 207 747 2607 or email markt@rusi.org

For all other enquiries please contact Rachel Bowden at rachelb@rusi.org.

Event manager: Rachel Bowden, +44(0)20 7747 2648