Strategic Cooperation Forum unites stakeholders from Eastern Partnership, Western Balkans and the EU

The EU Agency for Law Enforcement Training (CEPOL) and the EU Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol) held on 30-31 January a Joint Strategic Cooperation Forum within the framework of the TOPCOP and WB PaCT projects. This high-level meeting represented a step forward in the EU agencies’ efforts to increase the cooperation on security matters in the EU Neighbourhood and build trust with their partners in the region.

The event was opened by Europol’s Executive Director, Catherine De Bolle, who highlighted the importance of bringing relevant partners together for cross-border cooperation and joint actions. This is a key objective of Europol’s newly adopted Strategy, “Delivering Security in Partnership”. The Eastern Partnership and the Western Balkan regions are important partners to Europol and remain key priority areas in the Strategy.

CEPOL’s Executive Director Montserrat Marín López underlined the breadth and depth of this joint endeavour with Europol: “No country can act alone in confronting security threats. That is why we are constantly seeking solid partnerships. The TOPCOP and WB PaCT projects represent two excellent instruments to facilitate, in cooperation with Europol, the transfer of knowledge and the sharing of best practices between regions on serious and organised crime and terrorism.”

Valuable inputs were provided by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs (DG HOME) and Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR). The event at Europol’s headquarters convened numerous heads of law enforcement institutions running both operational and training activities. This forum brought to life the partnership between EaP and WB partners, EU Member States and Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) agencies, yielding significant results in terms of knowledge exchange on the challenges posed by criminal threats.

Various presentations illustrating the joint efforts with EU Neighbourhood partners to address critical threats in areas such as drugs trafficking, migrant smuggling and fraud recognised the value of EMPACT (the European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats) and the need for a strategic and coordinated response to serious and organised crime.

Relevant contributions were also made by representatives from Europol, Frontex, Eurojust and the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), alongside key regional organisations and project partners.

TOPCOP and WB PaCT projects’ achievements and lessons learnt set the stage for future priorities, guided by the commitment to countering organised crime and terrorism in the EU.

About TOPCOP

The Training and Operational Partnership Against Organised Crime (TOPCOP) project aims at improving operational effectiveness and fostering cooperation between the law enforcement authorities of the EU Member States and the Eastern Partnership countries. For more information, please visit the project page.

About WB PaCT

The Partnership against Crime and Terrorism project in the Western Balkans (WB PaCT) aims at enhancing the capacities of the authorities in the Western Balkans to fight organised crime and terrorism including preventing and countering violent extremism by enhancing cooperation within the region and with the EU. For more information, please visit the project page.

About EMPACT

The European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats (EMPACT) tackles the most important threats posed by organised and serious international crime affecting the EU. EMPACT strengthens intelligence, strategic and operational cooperation between national authorities, EU institutions and bodies, and international partners.