US embassy cable - 05OTTAWA1968

UNCLAS OTTAWA 001968 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NOFORN 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EB/IFD, EB/OMA, WHA/EPSC, AND WHA/CAN 
STATE PASS FEDERAL RESERVE BANK FOR CHUGH 
STATE PASS SEC FOR JACOBS 
TREASURY FOR BILL MURDEN AND DAVID NAGOSKI 
PARIS ALSO FOR USOECD 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EFIN, ECON, KTFN, PTER, CA, Financial Action Task Force 
SUBJECT: CANADIAN TO HEAD FINANCIAL ACTION TASK FORCE FROM 
JULY 2006 
 
 
1.  (SBU)  Frank Swedlove, Assistant Deputy Minister for 
Financial Sector Policy at the Department of Finance, will 
assume the presidency of the Financial Action Task Force 
(FATF) in July 2006.  The announcement was made during the 
FATF meeting in Singapore earlier this month.  In his press 
release, Prime Minister Paul Martin said "Canada plays a 
leading role in the fight against money laundering and 
terrorist financing," continuing that "Canada is committed to 
maintaining a strong and viable anti-money laundering and 
anti-terrorist financing regime."  Martin highlighted 
Canada's intention of seeking the FATF presidency in his 
February 2005 budget message, and also committed the GOC to 
active participation in regional bodies such as the 
Asia-Pacific Group on Money Laundering and the Caribbean 
Financial Action Task Force. The budget document announced 
legislative and regulatory changes to implement revisions to 
FATF standards, and the GOC is a reviewing the full range of 
anti-terrorism and money laundering legislation to make sure 
it complies with FATF (and UN) requirements as well as 
responding to points raised in a November 2004 Auditor 
General's report. 
 
2.  (SBU/Noforn) During a recent meeting with emboffs, 
Swedlove said that although he hasn't yet focused on his 
objectives at FATF, there are some issues that he expects may 
be active when he takes office.  He mentioned work on 
trade-based money laundering (over- and under-invoicing for 
criminal purposes) and improving FATF's relations with the 
private sector, including banks, and with other organizations 
such as the Egmont Group.  FATF may also take a look at the 
results of the peer review system, as apparently some of the 
countries that were reviewed last year were unpleasantly 
surprised by the outcome.  (Canada is due for review in early 
2007, during Swedlove's term.) 
 
3.  (SBU)  Swedlove attributes his selection to the fact that 
Canada has had "keen people on the file" in recent years. 
(For example, Canada took the lead in developing FATF's 40 
points.)  He said that although in the past their hard work 
was often not appreciated at higher levels in Ottawa, Prime 
Minister Martin is committed and, as he showed in his budget 
proposals, believes Canada needs to increase its profile in 
this area. 
 
4.  (SBU)  Bio note:  Swedlove has a low-key management style 
and enjoys friendly and collegial working relations with his 
staff.  He has a long history in financial sector issues and 
participated in the NAFTA negotiations.  In 1995 he chaired 
the WTO Committee on Trade in Financial Services. 
 
Visit Canada's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/ottawa 
 
WILKINS