Today, on February 27, 2024, the Head of ARMA, Olena Duma, and the Global Asset Recovery Expert, who manages the Secretariat of the Balkan Asset Management Interagency Network (BAMIN), Jill Thomas, held bilateral talks.

"This is the first time in the history of Ukraine, and certainly not the last. The door has been opened for the Ukrainian ARMA. These discussions are the result of the systematic work towards transparency and accountability that the Agency has demonstrated over the past six months at national level, including to our global partners from the US, EU and the Balkan countries," said Olena Duma.

The main topic of the talks was an issue that has been a prominent part of Jill Thomas' research since 2010: "Implementation of non-conviction-based confiscation in the EU".

Jill Thomas shared her extensive experience in working with the Organization of American States and the UNODC, including the establishment of an inter-agency network for asset recovery in the Caribbean (ARIN-CARIB), and similarly the Asset Recovery Inter-Agency Network West and Central Asia (ARIN-WCA).

Olena Duma expressed her deep gratitude to the Republic of North Macedonia for the support of the Ukrainian people, especially noting the provision of military assistance, which accounts for 16% of the annual defense budget of North Macedonia, and the support provided by the BAMIN secretariat.

Jill Thomas emphasized the readiness of the Ukrainian ARMA to learn from the experience of BAMIN member states, which will help overcome the challenges associated with the effective management of seized assets. She also noted the significant progress and improvements in addressing the global challenges faced by ARMA since her participation in the 2018 assessment of the Agency.

All participating countries welcomed ARMA to the Balkan Regional Network and expressed their full support for Ukraine.