Greece tops most corrupt EU countries list – surveyDecember 5, 2012 - 12:57 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - An international watchdog group says a new survey shows the countries worst hit by the European financial crisis are also seen as among the most corrupt in the European Union, AP reported. Transparency International's annual Corruption Perceptions Index released Wednesdaym December 4 shows Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece with the lowest scores in western Europe. Where 0 is "highly corrupt" and 100 is "very clean," Greece scored a 36, Italy 42, Portugal 63 and Spain, 65. By comparison, Denmark and Finland tied with New Zealand at the top of the list with scores of 90, while Germany scored 79, the U.K. 74 and the U.S. 73. Overall, the countries seen as most corrupt were Somalia, North Korea and Afghanistan — all of which scored eight. Two-thirds of the 176 countries ranked scored below 50. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | International cybercrime ringleaders arrested in Armenia, Ukraine Europol, Europe's crime agency, has arrested four ringleaders of several cybercrime networks that used botnets. Armenia skips CSTO Defense Ministers meeting A meeting of the Council of Defense Ministers of the Collective Security Treaty Organization countries began in Almaty. Armenian, Iranian foreigh policy chief talk over the phone The Foreign Minister of Armenia once again expressed condolences to his counterpart on the death of the President of Iran. Armenia, U.S. customs authorities to boost assistance with new deal The government has approved an agreement with the U.S. government on mutual assistance between the customs authorities. |