InformalMeetingoftheEUJusticeandHomeAffairsCouncil-Amsterdam
The combat of
terrorism and cybercrime were the main issues discussed by the Ministers of
Justice, in the framework of the deliberations of the Informal Meeting of the
EU Justice and Home Affairs Council, held in Amsterdam, on 25 and 26 January.
Due to the
recent terrorist attacks in Paris and the weaknesses recorded on the information
exchange processes concerning foreign fighters, the Ministers of Justice
elaborated on ways for the improvement of information exchange amongst EU
member states, as well as between the relevant EU agencies. The Ministers
stressed the need for interoperability of all available data bases, so that the
law enforcement agencies have an immediate access to all information which
might lead to identifying terrorists.
Aimingatthepreventionofterroristattacks, the
Ministers mentioned
theneedtoimproveboththequalityandquantityoftheavailableinformation, aswellastotakemeasuresthataregoingtoenablethe
exchange of
theinformationsharedbetweenthesecurityservicesandthecorrespondingnational law
enforcement agencies.
The Council also announced the set-up of the
Counter-Terrorism Group in Europol, which is expected to play a significant
role in the improvement of coordination amongst member states.
Moreover, the Council focused on the importance of
local societies’ assistance in dealing with radicalization and violent
extremism. The Local Authorities, in cooperation with the education, the social
and the health services could structure targeted programs for the prevention
and support of the vulnerable groups of people, especially the young, aiming at
enhancing society against terrorist propaganda.
In addition, the Ministers exchanged views on
issues of common concern faced by their law enforcement agencies as far as the
prosecution of cross-border crime committed through the internet is concerned,
such as the limitations on jurisdiction and the differences between the legal systems
of member states. They also shared views on the solution of problems occurring
at the collection of evidence stage, within the cross-border investigation
framework and the presentation of the evidence at the court.
The possibility of updating the existing European
legal rules and the adoption of common standards and processes of collection
and exchange of evidence, in order to effectively prosecute suspects, were
examined as possible solutions. Additionally, the importance of cooperation
with service providers, the training of the prosecution authorities personnel
on the best practices applied in other countries were emphasized during the
discussion.
Lastly, theEuropeanCommitteepresenteditsproposalsconcerningtheamendmentoflawsontheexchangeofcriminalrecords,
in order to include in the records the conviction of third country nationals.
At the side of the Council’s deliberations, the
Minister of Justice, MrIonasNicolaou, had a meeting with the Greek Minister of
Justice, MrNicos Paraskevopoulos, during which they discussed issues of common
interest.
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