"This is pure politization. It is impossible to do anything about it. The UK parliament has adopted a law. This is a measure within the law. A law is a law. However, what we are truly seeing is yet another step in the sanctions war against Russia. This is a manifestation of a foreign policy strategy through law," she said.
The measure needs to be approved by the House of Lords to become a law.
"The thing is that Great Britain, as one MP said, is a haven for dirty money all over the world and the UK is trying to resolve this issue. This is evident from the title of the act. I'll give them credit for not mentioning Russia in the bill, although the quite explicit underlying message [of the amendment] is clear," she said.
According to estimates, provided by the home affairs committee of the House of Commons last year, more than £100 billion (more than $124 billion) was laundered through British banks each year.
Sazonova suggested that the European Union and Canada could pass similar acts. The United States passed a bill on asset freezes of those accused of human rights violations in 2012, while Estonia adopted a similar law in 2016.
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