China has brought a third of its list of 100 most-wanted corruption suspects back to the country from overseas, its top anti-graft body said yesterday.

The list of suspects subject to an Interpol "red notice" — the closest thing to an international arrest warrant — was issued in 2014. Since then, 33 of them had been caught, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said in a statement.

Over the past two years, since setting up a team to chase graft suspects across the globe, the commission has returned to China 1,915 suspects from more than 70 countries, along with 7.47 billion yuan (US$1.12 billion), it said. It gave no other details.

China has been seeking more international cooperation to hunt down suspects who had fled overseas since the government began a drive against deep-rooted graft almost four years ago.

It has turned to persuasion to get suspects back from countries such as Canada and the United States, where many corrupt officials are believed to have gone.

G20 leaders who attended the recent summit in Hangzhou agreed on a document on cooperation with regard to suspects who had fled abroad.

An important principle in the document was appropriate measures against "safe havens."

The commission's Liu Jianchao, director of its international cooperation bureau, said the principles agreed in the document would "help overcome political and legal barriers to treaties on extradition and criminal judicial assistance."

They will help establish a cooperation system involving law enforcers, prosecutors and diplomats, Liu said.

At an APEC meeting in Beijing in 2014, a declaration on fighting corruption described how extradition, judicial assistance and more flexible legal measures could be used to recover stolen money.

"Compared with that declaration, these principles will have more extensive influence," said Cai Wei, the bureau's deputy head.

Many G20 countries are popular destinations for corrupt Chinese officials and the measures should reduce the scope for criminals to hide out there and in the world at large, Cai added.

The document states that members will investigate, prosecute, and refuse entry to individuals sought by law enforcers in other G20 countries while helping one another recover stolen money.

There will be improvements to both public and private sector transparency.

G20 leaders also agreed to set up a research center in China to look at the issue of returning corrupt officials and their assets.

A communique said the center would "be operated in line with international norms."

Cai said the center would help China's global efforts to fight corruption. It would be based at Beijing Normal University and experts from other G20 countries would be invited to join and look at issues such as legal mechanisms for extradition.

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