This training activity aims to foster knowledge and critical assessments concerning judicial and police cooperation with the Western Balkan countries to investigate and prosecute crimes in the region looking at the international, European, and national legislative framework.

They will also consist of the analysis of the impact on the legal systems of each Western Balkan country according to an interdisciplinary approach that includes criminal law and criminal procedural law, constitutional law, European and international law.

At the EU-Western Balkan Summit of Sofia, the EU and Western Balkan partners agreed to enhance strategic and operational work in the field of police and judicial cooperation, in particular through the participation of the Western Balkans in the EU Policy Cycle 2018-2021, coordinated EU-wide cooperation against serious and organised crime. With the Commission’s support, the EU Justice and Home Affairs agencies, such as Europol or CEPOL, made the commitment to further engage in the Western Balkans to effectively link internal and external actions against all forms of cross-border crime.

In this context, the activity aims to provide participants with all the mechanisms for the informal exchange of criminal intelligence and information, and the way in which police and prosecutors from different countries can work together, with specific reference to the development of joint investigation teams (JITs).

The training activity will also consist of joint training seminars for the teaching staff, international, and national experts, and the representatives of the different categories of stakeholders to provide technical expertise on judicial and police cooperation.