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Washington – United States Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and French Economy and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire met today and agreed on a set of measures to strengthen the bilateral U.S.-French cooperation in the fight against terrorist financing.

First, given the key role that targeted financial sanctions play in the fight against terrorist financing, Secretary Mnuchin and Minister Le Maire agreed to make full use of existing relevant instruments both at the national and international level.

Furthermore, France and the U.S. will deepen their cooperation in the identification and designation of new individuals and entities.

Second, Secretary Mnuchin and Minister Le Maire have decided to coordinate their efforts to strengthen further the means and tools of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). They also agreed to reinforce the robustness of the FATF network of FATF-style regional bodies, to ensure the full and effective implementation of FATF standards in all countries worldwide as quickly as possible.

Third, Secretary Mnuchin and Minister Le Maire agreed to develop a joint initiative to strengthen the tools available to encourage countries that do not fully and effectively implement the FATF standards to do so rapidly. These should include capacity building and technical assistance, as well as countermeasures and sanctions if and where appropriate.

Secretary Mnuchin and Minister Le Maire said: “Terrorism must be eradicated. We will combat all channels and sources of terrorist financing. Today’s decisions to cooperate more closely are an important step in the fight against terrorist financing.”