On 17 and18 December, the OSCE Transnational Threats Department and the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities hosted the Tenth Annual General Meeting of the Permanent Conference of Organized Crime Prosecutors (PCOCP) at the Hofburg in Vienna. The event brought together senior prosecutors, judges, legal experts, and representatives from 14 participating States from across Europe and South-Eastern Europe to enhance informal and formal international collaboration against transnational organized crime.
Participants discussed emerging criminal trends, including virtual assets such as cryptocurrencies, encrypted communications, and dark web-related crimes. Sessions also focused on digital evidence and strategies to dismantle criminal networks.
The roundtable highlighted the need for improved cross-border cooperation, informal networking, and integration with frameworks such as EUROJUST and INTERPOL. Delegates examined the sustainability of the permanent conference and proposed a strategic and operational roadmap.
"I strongly urge all of you to give the best of yourselves and seize this opportunity to explore new paths or even create new ones that can make our network (PCOCP) even stronger and more effective," said Apostolos Tzamalis, Chief Public Prosecutor of the Larisa Court of First Instance in Greece.
"This conference, as a platform for the PCOCP, stands as a testament to our shared commitment to upholding the rule of law, protecting our communities, and safeguarding the integrity of our institutions "said Irina Armenova-Yancheva, Deputy Head of the PCOCP Secretariat, Appellate Prosecution Office in Bulgaria
This Annual General Meeting of the PCOCP was organized as part of the OSCE extra-budgetary project "Strengthening Efforts to Combat Organized Crime in the OSCE Region," funded by Austria, Germany, Italy, and the United States.
