International legal regulation of combating corruption in public administration of the Russian Federation

The article analyses the provisions of the main international legal instruments against corruption in relation to the system of public administration of the Russian Federation. The authors emphasise that corruption poses a threat to the entire international community. Corrupt practices destabilise the functioning of state apparatuses of different countries, undermine the national economies and make the stable process of development of social and state institutions impossible. These circumstances have led to the international adoption of a number of legal instruments: the International Code of Conduct for Public Officials (1996), the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption (1999), the Civil Law Convention on Corruption (1999), the United Nations Convention against Corruption (2003) and others. These legal instruments set out the most effective forms and methods of combating corruption, which the participating countries can apply in their national legal systems. However, there are certain controversial and debatable aspects related to the implementation of the provisions of certain international legal acts against corruption. For example, the Russian Federation has not ratified the 1999 Convention on Civil Liability for Corruption or Article 20 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption of 2003. The authors conclude that there is now a need to strengthen the activities of the relevant authorities and officials to achieve better results in the fight against corruption. Anti-corruption measures need to be more actively implemented and applied not only in public authorities, but also in state and non-state enterprises and institutions. At present, work in these areas is being carried out, but not always in a quick, qualitative, consistent and systematic manner. The implementation of anti-corruption forms and methods is simply impossible without international cooperation due to the fact that corruption itself has ceased to be a problem of individual states. With this in mind, it is essential for Russia to strive for the widest possible application of anticorruption international legal instruments within the domestic legal system. In the conclusion of the article, the authors emphasise that the Russian Federation is actively and dynamically participating in the international legal regulation of anticorruption. Cooperation in this area has reached an exceptionally high level, which is recognised by many foreign partners. Ultimately, the application of international legal anticorruption measures in Russia will improve the system for combating corruption in public administration. The provisions of international instruments accumulate solid experience of many countries in this area. This experience can and should be used in our country. The authors declare no conflicts of interests.