IRAQI ASSETS: BRAZIL DEMARCHED

UNCLAS BRASILIA 001484 SIPDIS SENSITIVE STATE FOR EB/ESC/TFS - JASALOOM TREASURY FOR WALLWORK, ROSS AND WEISS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EFIN PREL IZ BR SUBJECT: IRAQI ASSETS: BRAZIL DEMARCHED REF: A. STATE 110075 ¶B. WHA/BSC EMAIL 5/27/04 This cable is Sensitive but Unclassified, please protect accordingly. ¶1. (SBU) Emboff made reftel points on Iraqi assets to Ricardo Liao, head of the Central Bank Office for the Combat of Illicit Financial Activities, and to Marcos Pinta Gama, head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Office for the Combat of Illicit International Activities, in meetings June 9 and 16, respectively. Liao outlined to Emboff the steps that the GoB has taken to implement UNSCR 1483. He explained that the Central Bank, acting pursuant to a presidential decree implementing UNSCR 1483, had issued a circular notice to all banks requiring them to verify whether they had any accounts in the names of the persons or entities listed by the UN. Similar action was taken by the Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission with regard to investment firms. To date, no matches with the Iraq lists had been reported. ¶2. (SBU) Liao acknowledged that the GoB is dependent on banks' efforts to comply with the UNSC-mandated sanctions. Emboff pointed out to both Pinta Gama and Liao that many new Iraqi entities had been added to the UN Sanctions Committee lists since the circular had been issued and suggested it might be useful to remind the financial institutions to maintain vigilance and update their databases with the latest UN lists. Pinta Gama agreed to issue a circular notice to the banks informing them of the updated UN lists. ¶3. (U) Note: Reftel did not list post as an action addressee, but we took action based on an email request from WHA. HRINAK