Skopje, 6 February 2024 (MIA) — The government has approved and sent to Parliament amendments to the Law on Restrictive Measures, now expanding its scope to also sanction corruption, abuse of office and hybrid threats, Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani told a press conference Tuesday.

The basis for levying sanctions against individuals or companies has also been expanded to now include, in addition to legal acts issued by the UN and EU, legal acts issued by USA and the United Kingdom.

The bill also introduces two new restrictions. "To the previously banned entry, embargo, and financial measures, we are adding two temporary security measures," FM Osmani said.

He said the two new restrictive measures were a temporary ban on an individual from holding public office and a ban on a company from participating in public procurement.

In response to a question whether the government could levy sanctions ahead of a final court decision, Osmani said measures would be taken in coordination with the Ministry of Justice and the Secretariat for Legislation.

He said after being notified of a legal act from the USA, the United Kingdom, or the EU, at the proposal of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Public Prosecutor's Office or other agencies for national security and financial investigations, the government could initiate the sanctioning process.

After approving of the proposed restrictive measures, Osmani said, "the government will task the proposer to collect all available information and submit it to the Public Prosecutor's Office, which has a duty to immediately launch an investigation in line with the Law on Criminal Procedure."

Other laws would need to be aligned with the updated Law on Restrictive Measures, he added. These include the Law on Criminal Procedure and the Law on Public Procurement. mr/