BAGHDAD -- A U.S. official in Baghdad has urged the Iraqi government to step up efforts to prosecute foreigners convicted of using corruption to secure deals in Iraq, RFE/RL’s Radio Free Iraq reports.
Joseph Stafford, the U.S. Embassy’s anticorruption coordinator, told a conference hosted by the Iraqi Defense Ministry that legislation is needed to criminalize the offering or payment of bribes as specified by the UN Convention Against Corruption, which Iraq has signed.
“The Iraqi legal system has no legislation ensuring the criminal prosecution of foreigners involved in corruption,” Stafford said.
A representative of the Iraqi government’s anticorruption commission, Sami Shabak, told the conference his commission has presented comprehensive anticorruption legislation to the cabinet and that it will soon be submitted to parliament.