Combating the funding of terrorism

Switzerland has signed all 16 of the United Nations (UN) anti-terrorism agreements and protocols, including the UN Convention on the funding of terrorism.

Various internal measures exist to interdict suspicious cash movements. The Swiss authorities can thus block assets without delay if there is a suspicion of terrorism funding. Swiss banking secrecy affords no protection to criminals and terrorists.

Switzerland has called on various international bodies to:

• combat money laundering more effectively
• impose better financial sanctions
• interdict the movement of cash by politically prominent persons where there are doubts about its origin.

Switzerland is a member of the Counter-Terrorism Action Group (CTAG). The CTAG is a body of experts. It was founded after the decision of the G8 (the world’s seven leading industrialized states and Russia) to adopt an action plan against terrorism and its funding at its summit in Evian in 2003. The CTAG is networked with other international bodies such as the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC), the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF/GAFI).