The Ukrainian parliament has expanded the powers of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), empowering the body with the right to initiate the arrest of terrorists' assets for an indefinite period of time.
A total of 274 out of 367 lawmakers registered in the session hall on April 21 amended some Ukrainian laws regarding the arrest of assets linked to the financing of terrorism and financial transactions, as established in a UN Security Council resolution.
The law says that proceedings in cases of the arrest the said assets, the release of the assets and the provision of access to the assets are carried out on the basis of the approval of the SBU head or his deputy.
The approval is submitted to the court of first instance in written form and is to contain the name of the administrative court, postal address and the phone number of the applicant, the grounds for the application, and a list of documents and other materials regarding the issue.
If the requirements in granting the approval are not observed, the court informs the applicant of this and grants the applicant time to bring the request into line with the requirements.
The court issues a ruling on the approval at a closed-door hearing no later than the next working day of the moment of the submission of the application for approval, informing the applicant, but not informing the owner of the assets.
The rulings to arrest the said assets, release assets or provide access to them are final and are to be executed immediately.
