29 May 2020 EDOC#1113617v2 Written contribution to JPSG - May 2020 Reporting on Europol External Relations September 2019-June 2020 Introduction During the reported period, Europol has continued developing its external relations according to the priorities set by the Management Board and the priorities of the Europol Strategy 2020+. The first semester 2020 was dedicated to the reporting on the implementation of the current Europol External Strategy 2017-2020 and the preparation of the new External Strategy 2021-2024. 1. Overview 2019 Europol’s external relations continued to support the competent authorities of the Member States in their cooperation with third parties in accordance with their operational needs. The Management Board endorsed the model Working Arrangement at its meeting in October 2019, which facilitates negotiations with external partners according to the Europol priorities. Europol continued its cooperation with Israel established by a Working Arrangement signed in 2018. Israel has its Liaison Bureau in Europol Headquarters since September 2018 and cooperation has been assessed very positively by both Europol operational units and the Liaison Officers’ community. Israel is connected to SIENA. There has been active engagement in a number of operations, for example focusing on CEO fraud, crypto trading, investment scams and numerous contacts of a more strategic nature. The Working Arrangement establishing cooperative relations between the National Police Agency of Japan and Europol, signed in 2018, materialised via the opening of the Japanese Liaison Bureau at Europol and connecting the new partners to SIENA in November 2019. A Liaison Bureau for New Zealand was opened at Europol Headquarters in October 2019, including SIENA connection. Daily operational cooperation between Europol and Western Balkan partners continued in the second half of 2019. Europol also put efforts in the IPA 2017 Pilot Project on the deployment of Liaison Officers to the Western Balkan region. Europol received positive feedback from the Member States and the Albanian authorities on the Europol Liaison Officer deployed to Albania. In total three liaison officers were recruited and two further deployments to Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina are expected to be made in 2020. Europol Unclassified - Basic Protection Level The Executive Director visited Colombia, Argentina and Brazil in September 2019 to develop further contacts with South American law enforcement. Her visit together with Europol active engagement within AMERIPOL and the EU funded El PACcTO project opened further cooperation in the region. Europol noted a significant progress in the cooperation with South America, with a particular focus on cooperation in countering drug trafficking. The Strategic Agreement between Europol and Brazil came into force in December 2019. Negotiations with the latter for the deployment of a Liaison Officer and for the establishment of a secure communication line are on-going. The Management Board meeting in December 2019 adopted the amended list of priority partners for concluding Working Arrangements, adding Armenia, Argentina and the Intra-European Organization of Tax Administration to the priorities. Further cooperation continued also with the other partners with which Europol concluded Working Arrangements with such as European Union Naval Force Mediterranean (EUNAVFOR MED), the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addictions (EMCDDA) and the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA). 2. Overview 2020 So far in 2020, Europol’s main task in the area of external relations has been the preparation of the overview of the implementation of the current Europol External Strategy 2017-2020 and drafting the new Europol External Strategy 2021-2024. Both documents will be discussed at the Europol Management Board meeting in June 2020. 2.1. Implementation of the Europol External Strategy 2017-2020 The report summarized that the main drivers of Europol’s external cooperation stem from the findings of the key corporate reports, the SOCTA, TE-SAT and iOCTA, the priorities agreed in the EU Policy Cycle and political decisions driven by challenges such as the irregular migration crisis and recent large-scale terrorist attacks. Europol fulfilled the objective of optimising the network of a growing community of external partners, as well as by raising interest on the side of third countries and international organisations for mutual cooperation. It is proof of trust and good reputation as well as proof of Europol’s business model to be a suitable one for building functional partnerships with third party law enforcement. Europol’s objective to strengthen its role as the preferred platform for international police cooperation in the EU resulted in the increasing community of liaison officers at Europol. Currently, along with 146 Member States’ liaison officers, there are 80 liaison officers from 20 third countries in Europol headquarters. While fulfilling the objective of promoting Europol’s successful cooperation model, the past months have been marked by intensified contacts and activities within the El PACcTO Project. The EU funded project concerns 18 Latin American countries eligible under the Development Cooperation Instrument. Several Europol experts have been invited to participate in “El PACcTO” events in Latin America, and “El PACcTO” colleagues have organised visits to Europol. Europol cooperation with Western Balkan partners remained prominent during this reported period. All partners in the region, except Kosovo1, have operational agreements 1 * This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ Opinion on Kosovo declaration of independence Europol Unclassified - Basic Protection Level with Europol and access to SIENA. Albania, North Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro have posted liaison officers at Europol. Negotiations with Kosovo on Working Arrangements were finalised and a draft Working Arrangement will be discussed at the Management Board meeting in June 2020. Cooperation with the Western Balkan partners remains high on the agenda also under the current EU Policy Cycle. All countries of the region are identified as partners for Operational Actions, mainly in the area of trafficking in cannabis, cocaine, heroin and firearms, irregular migration, trafficking in human beings, and organised property crime. Cooperation with the Western Balkan partners in the area of counter-terrorism has also received special attention. There has been an increase in EMPACT activities involving the Western Balkans since 2019. Cooperation with Canada developed well in the reporting period especially on cybercrime, which in 2019 resulted in the permanent deployment of a liaison officer of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) to the Canadian liaison bureau at Europol. Chile, Mexico, Argentina and Ameripol are on the list of priority partners with which Europol may conclude Working Arrangements. First contacts have been established with Chile. The draft Working Arrangement between the Ministry of Security and Citizen Protection of the United Mexican States and Europol establishing cooperative relations between law enforcement authorities will be tabled for adoption to the Management Board for its meeting in June 2020. Europol and Russia cooperation is based on a Strategic Agreement signed in 2003 under which Europol can only share non-personal data. A visit to Europol took place in February 2020 as a follow-up to the Russia-EU CT dialogue (led by the European Commission) held in October 2019. Europol increased contacts with the MENA region, in particular in the area of counter terrorism and through capacity building projects. The cooperation is mainly with the European Commission (i.e. through the CT MENA Project), EEAS (i.e. via CT dialogues,), CEPOL, EBCG, INTERPOL, the United Nations (UN) and projects such as EUROMED Police. In parallel, there were several initiatives to start negotiations on Working Arrangements. Familiarisation visits to Europol were planned for the first quarter of 2020 but were postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Europol has been making efforts to enhance its cooperation with other international organisations that play a role in the field of security, such as INTERPOL, the United Nations/United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UN/UNODC), the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), World Customs Organisation (WCO), North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Kosovo Specialist Chamber and Specialist Prosecutor’s Office and United Nations Office of Counter – Terrorism (UNTOC). The 2nd Action Plan between Europol and World Customs Organisation (WCO) was signed on 2 October 2019. A new activity that should be highlighted is the Exchange Programme designed to ensure complementarities and possible common activities. A SIENA connection was established on 1 October 2019 to enhance mutual exchange of information. 2.2. Europol External Strategy 2021-2024 The drafting of a future Europol External Strategy is still on-going. The Management Board of Europol should discuss the draft at its June 2020 meeting. Europol would like to build its future external relations based on the Europol Strategy 2020+ priorities. Two goals have been suggested to the Management Board: Europol as an integral part of the EU security architecture; Europol Unclassified - Basic Protection Level Europol’s external relations flexibility to respond to the Member States’ operational needs. Europol’s