Kosovo will have liaison officers at EUROPOL

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 The Board of Directors of the European Union Intelligence Agency, EUROPOL, approved the employment agreement with law enforcement agencies in Kosovo, the Croatian Interior Ministry announced on Friday - the country currently chairing the EU Council.

The decision was taken at the 115th session of this board, which was held in the form of a video conference on June 9 and 10.

It is announced that the agreement will be signed by the Executive Director of EUROPOL and the Minister of Internal Affairs and Public Administration of Kosovo.

The agreement, approved by the board of directors, provides for co-operation between EUROPOL and the Kosovo Police, Kosovo Customs, Tax Administration and money laundering prevention units.

According to the announcement, with this agreement, Kosovo is "given new opportunities in international police cooperation."

Kosovo, so far, has been the only country in the Western Balkans with which EUROPOL has not had a cooperation agreement and consequently has not had the opportunity to exchange information, in order to fight serious and organized crime.

Based on this working agreement, which will enter into force on the day of signing, Kosovo will establish a central office for cooperation with EUROPOL and will gain access to the EUROPOL communication channel, as well as the possibility of sending of liaison officers at the EUROPOL headquarters in The Hague.

In addition to cooperation with EUROPOL, "Kosovo, in this way will have a new and more active form of cooperation with all EU countries," the statement said.

Albania, Montenegro, Serbia and Northern Macedonia are among the countries that are not members of the EU, but have liaison officers at EUROPOL.

The Croatian Interior Ministry said the agreement with Kosovo "is an important step in strengthening co-operation with partners in Southeast Europe, in response to security challenges and promoting European values".

Since 2010, Kosovo has made several attempts to join the international police agency, INTERPOL, but has been thwarted by Serbia, which has campaigned against Kosovo.

The last time, in November 2018, failed to secure the required two-thirds majority of the seats in the INTERPOL General Assembly to become a member of this mechanism. In October last year, the then Government of Kosovo withdrew its application for membership, postponing it for this year.
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