Ambassador Tells Diab Switzerland Ready to Help on Capital Flight Reports
Swiss Ambassador to Lebanon Monika Schmutz Kirgoz on Thursday held talks with Prime Minister Hassan Diab at the Grand Serail.
Commenting on reports that a number of Lebanese politicians have recently transferred billions of dollars to Swiss banks despite the de facto capital controls imposed by Lebanese banks, the ambassador said her country is willing to investigate the claims should the Lebanese government request help.
Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh said on January 16 that legal measures would be taken to know the fate of the transfers allegedly sent to Switzerland.
"All legal measures needed will be taken to know the fate of money transfers to Switzerland in 2019 and if they truly happened,” he said.
Asked whether Lebanon is going to contact Switzerland to inquire on the issue, Salameh said: “We have to confirm first whether these remittances actually came out of Lebanon.”
On December 30, State Prosecutor Ghassan Oueidat had requested information from Swiss and Lebanese authorities about the alleged transfers.
The National News Agency said Oueidat has sought the help of “the Swiss judiciary, the Special Investigation Commission of Banque du Liban and the Banking Control Commission of Lebanon.”
The agency added that the prosecutor has asked for information to verify whether or not Lebanese politicians had recently made any “suspicious” transfers.
Asharq al-Awsat newspaper had reported that the Lebanese judiciary had launched an investigation into reports claiming that nine Lebanese politicians had transferred $2 billion abroad over 15 days.
It said a judicial probe got underway simultaneously with investigations that were being carried out by the central bank.
Source: Naharnet
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