The police forces of the Western Balkan countries are committed to a unified joint response in the fight against all forms of transnational organized crime in order to ensure the security of citizens and the region.
This was announced at a meeting of regional police directors held on Friday in Kotor, hosted by the Police Administration of Montenegro, headed by Acting Director Lazar Šćepanović.
The meeting brought together the police directors of Albania, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, assistant directors of Serbia and North Macedonia, as well as high-ranking representatives of Interpol, Europol and Frontex, the EU4FAST project, the Delegation of the European Union in Podgorica and the Italian Ministry of the Interior.
As announced by the Montenegrin Police Directorate, during the one-day discussion, police directors had the opportunity to exchange experiences and best practices in the fight against serious organized crime and consider further steps in achieving common goals.
A special focus, it is said, was on the fight against human trafficking and migrant smuggling, as well as on the interoperability of national databases.
"The police directors reiterated their commitment to a unified joint response in the fight against all forms of transnational organized crime in order to ensure the security of citizens and the region, and on this path, the support of renowned international partners is of utmost importance," the statement said.
It is stated that representatives of Interpol, Europol and Frontex, as well as the Delegation of the European Union and the EU4FAST project, during their presentations, emphasized their readiness to support Montenegro and other Western Balkan countries on their European path.
"Recalling recent successful international activities that have had significant results in the fight against transnational organized crime and recommending Montenegro as the first country in the Western Balkans in which an International Operations Room will be established," the statement added.
During the meeting, international partners particularly emphasized that the events organized by the Police Administration over the past two days represent a milestone in fulfilling obligations from the integration process and achieving progress in the final benchmarks in Chapter 24 - Justice, Freedom and Security.
The meeting of the regional police directors was organized under the auspices of the Italian component of the project "EU Support to Strengthen the Fight against Migrant Smuggling and Human Trafficking in the Western Balkans" (EU4FAST-WB).
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