The United States has notified the Council of Europe that it is withdrawing from the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO). Until now, only Russia and Belarus had left the organisation.
This was reported by the Associated Press, citing statements from the Council of Europe and the US State Department.
In Washington, the decision was explained by the fact that US participation in GRECO requires an annual financial contribution but, in the view of the US administration, does not provide tangible benefits for national security.
"The era of writing blank cheques to international bureaucratic systems is over", the State Department said.
Instead, the US government plans to focus on other anti-corruption tools it considers more effective. These include visa restrictions, sanctions and targeted assistance to strengthen overseas criminal investigations into corruption offences.
GRECO said it remains open to resuming co-operation with the United States in the future. The Council of Europe also noted that the United States made a "valuable contribution" to the group’s work and to international experience in combating corruption.
GRECO is the Council of Europe’s anti-corruption body, which carries out peer evaluations of member states and develops recommendations on preventing corruption.