OREANDA-NEWS.  September 28, 2012. The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia) and Russian Energy Compliance Alliance, with support of the Centre for Business Ethics and Corporate Governance organized the Round Table on “G20* Proposal for a Global Model for Anti-Corruption Enforcement – Project” (the Round Table), reported the press-centre of FAS Russia.

FAS at the Round Table was represented by the Head of Department for Control over Social Sphere and Commerce, Timophey Nizhegorodtsev, Deputy Head of the Department for International Economic Cooperation, Andrey Yunak, and Deputy Head of the Department for Control over Social Sphere and Commerce, Nadezhda Sharavskaya.

The purpose of the Round Table was to discuss and put forward proposals on G20 global model and anti-corruption enforcement.

The Round Table was opened by Timophey Nizhegorodtsev. The welcoming address was also given by the President and Executive Director of the Centre for Business Ethics and Corporate Governance, Patricia Dowden, and a partner of PriceWaterHouseCoopers, Cameron Moates.

Timophey Nizhegorodtsev discussed the schemes used by some foreign companies. Operating in Russia, such companies exploit the norms of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and various compliances as a disguise and justification of unfair business practices.

According to Timophey Nizhegorodtsev, a solution can be when “a company has a commercial policy that describes clear requirements and procedures for doing business by potential and actual counteragents. Commercial policy supplements compliance procedures, making sure that company’s actions on the market comply with the anti-corruption law. When a company has a commercial policy with clear requirements and procedures for access to the goods for potential and actual counteragents and compliance with such policy prevent the risks of initiating investigations against the company upon signs of violating the antimonopoly law. Identifying whether enforcement of the antimonopoly or anti-corruption laws has a priority - is a false choice. The antimonopoly and anticorruption laws are the two sides of the same medal.”

*G-20 is a format of international meetings of the ministers of finances and the heads of central banks representing 20 economies: 19 largest national economies and the European Union, represented by the state chairing the Council of the European Union (except when the chairing state is a member of G-8, and thus is already represented in G20).

The Centre for Business Ethics and Corporate Governance (CFBE) was formed in ST Petersburg. The Centre devised the “Declaration of Integrity in Business Conduct”- a contract designed to form an ethical basis in relations between the state and the private sector. The Declaration is signed by 140 firms that voluntarily have undertaken an obligation to abandon corruption practices and put the Code of Ethics into service.