Regional cooperation among police agencies is crucial for an effective fight against organized crime, illegal migration, human trafficking, and cybercrime, as stated today in Sarajevo at the assembly of the Southeast Europe Police Chiefs Association (SEPCA).
The Southeast Europe Police Chiefs Association (SEPCA) was established in January 2022 in Pula, Republic of Croatia. Its aim is to strengthen police cooperation and coordination in combating organized crime, serving as the most professional police network consisting of police chiefs from Southeast Europe.
Ramo Isak, Federal Minister of Internal Affairs, told Fena that hosting this event in Sarajevo holds special significance for Bosnia and Herzegovina, emphasizing that crime knows no borders and that cooperation between police agencies is necessary to successfully combat security threats.
“If police agencies achieve high-quality and effective cooperation, we can counter crime across all of Europe and the world. Through joint efforts in combating crime, significant results have been achieved, and most of the joint operations conducted by our police structures with law enforcement agencies from the region have been successful,” Isak said.
The minister stated that drug smuggling and trafficking present a particular challenge because, as he noted, “Bosnia and Herzegovina is a transit country in the center of Europe.”
“If we prevent drug smuggling in Bosnia and Herzegovina, then Europe will be more secure. A secure Bosnia and Herzegovina means a secure Europe,” Isak said.
He particularly emphasized the importance of international cooperation in cases of bomb threats and other security challenges, stressing that good coordination among police agencies helps strengthen citizens’ sense of security.
Speaking about the results of regional cooperation in recent years, the minister said that the exchange of information between police agencies leads to faster crime detection and more successful joint operations involving Europol, the Federal Police Administration, cantonal ministries of interior, and regional police agencies.
According to the Memorandum of Understanding, SEPCA members are police organizations from Albania, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania, Republika Srpska, and Serbia. The purpose of the Memorandum of Understanding is to strengthen police cooperation and recognize the need to establish a new strategic approach to expand police capacities in the fight against all forms of crime.
Director of the Federal Police Administration and Chair of SEPCA, Igor Marić, said that the event is important for strengthening cross-border and regional cooperation in the fight against organized crime.
“The burning issues for the countries of the region are human trafficking, illegal migration, and cybercrime,” Marić said.
As one of the next steps toward enhancing regional cooperation, he specified forming joint research teams to work on concrete cases, adding that some activities in this direction have already been launched.
Marić said that the gathering is attended by police chiefs from eight Southeast European countries, as well as representatives of other security agencies from Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Topics of this SEPCA gathering include challenges of illegal migration, combating human trafficking and migrant smuggling in Southeast Europe, fighting organized crime, and strengthening regional cooperation through joint investigative teams, as well as the current state and improvement of cooperation in the field of cybercrime.
SEPCA promotes the development of modern police practices, experience, and methods by implementing joint activities, exchanging information, enhancing the professional competencies of police officers, promoting gender equality, and jointly working to prevent and suppress all forms of organized crime.
Over the years, SEPCA has been a strategically important actor and central point in combating transnational organized crime in Southeast Europe.
The aim of SEPCA is to further strengthen the strategic and operational aspects of cooperation among SEPCA member states, as well as cooperation at the regional and international levels, Fena writes.
