Western Balkans Criminal Justice

The European Union (EU) and the Western Balkans face common criminal threats, and cooperation between the EU and its neighbours is crucial to effectively combat cross-border organised crime. As candidates and potential candidates for EU membership, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia are key partners in building a safer Europe.

For the past two decades, Eurojust has provided operational support and assistance to EU Member States, with a particular focus on facilitating judicial cooperation. The Western Balkans Criminal Justice (WBCJ) Project was developed to extend this operational support to Western Balkan partners, even in cases where no EU country is directly involved.

The aim of the WBCJ Project is to strengthen cooperation within the Western Balkans and between the region and the European Union in the fight against organised crime and terrorism, using modern tools and instruments. Equipping Western Balkan partners with EU judicial cooperation tools and working methods - such as coordination meetings, coordination centres, and Joint Investigation Teams (JITs) - is essential for the successful outcome of cross-border investigations.

The project covers the following types of support:

Expertise and best practices from Eurojust and EU member states on how to use tools and instruments for judicial cooperation;
Direct funding for operational meetings (coordination meetings , coordination centres) and investigative activities among Western Balkan partners, both within and outside of JITs;
Provision of modern ICT equipment such as secure mobile phones and laptops;
Translation and interpretation services.

Scope

The WBCJ Project is funded by the European Commission’s Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III) and covers the Western Balkans 6 (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia). It is implemented by Eurojust since 14 September 2022 for an initial duration of forty-eight months, through a contribution agreement of EUR 6,000,000. The overall objective is to strengthen the strategic and operational cooperation within the Western Balkan partners and between the region and the EU on fighting organised crime and terrorism, using modern judicial cooperation tools.

The Project pursues the following specific objectives:

Increase the ability of Western Balkan authorities to use modern judicial cooperation tools for investigating and prosecuting serious and organised cross-border crime
Strengthen the knowledge of the Western Balkan authorities of tools, instruments and best practices linked to judicial cooperation in the EU

To reach the above objectives, the Project is expected to deliver the following results:

A Contact Group, comprised of representatives of the six Western Balkan partners, is established and meets regularly (R1);
Western Balkan authorities are equipped with the necessary technical tools and financial means to coordinate parallel investigations (R2);
Western Balkan authorities are equipped with the necessary technical tools and financial means to set up and carry out JITs among themselves and with an EU MS (R3);
Increased participation of a larger number of Western Balkan authorities in Eurojust- supported cases (R4);
Western Balkan authorities are equipped with the necessary capacities, capabilities and knowledge to share information on coordinating investigations and prosecutions (R5);
Increased participation of Western Balkan partners in the practitioners’ networks and focus groups supported by Eurojust (R6).

Activities

The launching conference took place on 15 May 2023 at Eurojust premises, in The Hague. It marked the end of the inception phase and the official start of the project operational activities. The conference was attended by four Ministers of Justice, one Secretary of State, and four State Prosecutors from the Western Balkan partners, along with representatives from the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers (DG JUST), the Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR) and the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the European Union. At this conference, the authorities of the six Western Balkan partners reaffirmed their full commitment to the project at the highest level. A press release was published on the Eurojust website and translated into the languages of the Western Balkan partners.

The WBCJ Project revolves around the Contact Group, which functions as a regional coordination mechanism for cross-border judicial cooperation in criminal matters. The Contact Group is composed of two representatives per each Western Balkan partner (prosecutors and/or police officials) appointed by their home authorities. The Contact Group meets regularly in various locations, for example, at Eurojust or in the Western Balkans.

Five meetings of the Contact Group took place in 2023, which were held on:

8 March 2023 in The Hague
15 May 2023 in The Hague
5 July 2023 in Sarajevo
27 September 2023 in Podgorica
30 November 2023 in an online setting.

In 2024, six meetings of the Contact Group are planned for:

1 February 2024 in Vienna
19 March 2024 in Skopje
30 May 2024 in Tirana
2 July 2024 in The Hague
September 2024
November 2024.

On 26 June 2023, the project organised a Webinar on Admissibility of Evidence Obtained from SKY ECC and Encrochat Networks, in cooperation with the European Judicial Cybercrime Network (EJCN), gathering more than 300 participants.
On 6 July 2023 in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the project organised the Regional Seminar on JITs in Migrant Smuggling Cases. This seminar was organised jointly with the JITs Network Secretariat and the Focus Group on Migrant Smuggling at Eurojust. It was the first event organised by the Project in the region and it was attended by more than 50 participants, including prosecutors and law enforcement officers from the six Western Balkans partners. The aim of the seminar was to introduce the JITs Network Secretariat, as well as highlighting the benefits of joining the Focus Group on Migrant Smuggling. The seminar included a section on case studies, during which EU prosecutors presented successful joint investigations teams.
On 14-15 February 2024 at Eurojust, the WBCJ Project, together with the EU4FAST Project and the SCOPE Project, co-organised a Seminar on cooperation between Police and Judicial Authorities within Joint Investigation Teams (JITs) in Migrant Smuggling Cases with an Exchange of Best Practices between EU and Western Balkans Practitioners.
On 29 May in Tirana, Albania, the WBCJ Project in close cooperation with the Genocide Network Secretariat and the EU Regional Advisor on Counter Terrorism/Security, organised a Seminar on EU and Western Balkan Experience on the Cumulative Prosecution of Foreign Terrorist Fighters and female returnees for terrorism related offences and core international crimes, which was attended by almost 60 participants from the Western Balkans and beyond.
On 2 July 2024 at Eurojust, the WBCJ Project organized a peer-to-peer exchange meeting between Western Balkan prosecutors and the French and Belgian Desks at Eurojust concerning SKY ECC and EncroChat evidence. The participants shared their experiences and lessons learned.

On 28 September 2023 in Budva, Montenegro, the project organised the Regional Consultative Meeting on Outreach Strategies, which brought together Contact Group Members, Liaison Prosecutors and Eurojust Contact Points in the Western Balkans, to develop a promotional strategy of Eurojust and the WBCJ Project in the region.
Back-to-back on 28 September 2023 in Budva, Montenegro, the project organised the Outreach Event for Montenegrin practitioners in cooperation with the European Judicial Network (EJN) and the JITs Network Secretariat. The meeting focused on promoting Eurojust and the WBCJ Project, outlining the support available for Montenegrin practitioners.
On 1 February 2024 in the premises of the Ministry of Justice in Vienna, Austria, the WBCJ Project in cooperation with the European Judicial Network (EJN), organised the Joint Meeting of the EJN Contact Points in the Western Balkans and the WBCJ Project Contact Group Members, which aimed at outlining the support available to the Western Balkan authorities, and explained the differences between the EJN and the WBCJ Project.
On 19 March 2024 in Skopje, North Macedonia, the project continued with the series of promotional events, and organised the Outreach Event for Macedonian practitioners. The meeting focused on promoting Eurojust and the WBCJ Project, presenting the support available for North Macedonia.
On 20 March 2024 in Pristina, Kosovo*, another promotional meeting was held, namely, the Outreach Event for practitioners in Kosovo*. The meeting gathered several practitioners, and focused on outlining the support available to them through Eurojust and the WBCJ Project.
On 30 May 2024 in Tirana, Albania, the project organised the Outreach Event for practitioners in Albania, which gathered a large number of prosecutors. The meeting outlined the support available to their investigations through Eurojust and the WBCJ Project.

The WBCJ Project will continue the series of outreach event in the Western Balkans, with the event for Serbia upcoming in September 2024 and for Bosnia and Herzegovina in October 2024.

On 25 October 2023 in Tirana, Albania, the project in close cooperation with the JITs Network Secretariat organised a training on JITs funding for the Albanian National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and Special Anti-Corruption Structure (SPAK). The training focused on the Eurojust JITs Funding Programme and the related reimbursement procedures.
Between 3-5 July 2024 at Eurojust, the WBCJ Project, in cooperation with the JITs Network Secretariat and the Academy of European Law (ERA), organized a training for Western Balkan prosecutors and investigators dedicated to the topic of joint investigation teams. The training concluded with the awarding of the certificates of attendance.

On 6 June 2024 in Budva, Montenegro, the WBCJ Project, in cooperation with the Supreme State Prosecution Office of Montenegro, organised the first Consultative Forum of General and Special Chief Prosecutors of the Western Balkan region. The forum gathered all six Western Balkan authorities, reaffirming their support in the fight against organised crime. The press release from this meeting can be accessed via this link.

Timeline of events 2024

Tools for practitioners

The Western Balkans Criminal Justice project cooperates with the European Judicial Network (EJN) in developing content for Western Balkans judicial practitioners, in their respective languages.

News and publications

News

Alleged large-scale coin forger arrested in Kosovo due to Eurojust support

06 August 2024|PRESS RELEASE