The same day U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) introduced a resolution urging Congress to combat international criminal organizations, illicit trade, and the use of trade-based money laundering, the U.S. Senate unanimously approved it, agreeing such activities pose a significant threat to America’s national security.
“Trade-based money laundering is the common thread tying together drug and human trafficking, counterfeit products, and terrorism,” Sen. Cassidy said on Dec. 21. “Given advancements made by China, Putin’s war in Ukraine, and our southern border crisis, this threat remains a priority.”
Sen. Cassidy on Dec. 19 sponsored Senate Resolution (S.Res.) 874, which is cosponsored by two Democrats and expresses the sense of the Senate that such illegal activities also pose a risk to the interests of the allies and partners of the United States around the world, according to the resolution’s text.
In addition to considering the countering of illicit economies, illicit trade, and trade-based money laundering as a national priority and committing to detect, address, and prevent such activities, S.Res. 874 also calls on the president to continue to assess the ongoing risks of trade-based money laundering in the periodic national risk assessments on money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing conducted by the U.S. Treasury Department, the text says.
“We’re in a clash of civilizations: democracy and the free market on one side versus kleptocracy and authoritarianism on the other,” said U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), the lead original cosponsor of the resolution. “To fight back, we must boost coordination among key federal agencies involved in overseeing trade and gather better information on suspicious financial and trade activity.”
The resolution now awaits passage in the U.S. House of Representatives.