In cooperation with the Ministry of Justice Directorate General for Foreign Relations and European Union Affairs, the Council of Europe has organised a two-day international conference "International Judicial Cooperation in Criminal Matters and Combatting Cybercrime" under the EU-CoE Joint Programme "Improving International Judicial Cooperation in Criminal Matters in Turkey".
Organised in the framework of the Council of Europe's 75th anniversary and the 20th Anniversary of the Council of Europe Programme Office in Ankara, in collaboration with the CyberSEE project implemented by the Council's C-PROG Office in Bucharest, the conference, from 27-28 May, brought together 150 national and international legal professionals and key partners, including representatives of the judicial and law enforcement authorities of Kosovo*, to discuss challenges and best practices related to international cooperation in criminal matters.
The event, held in Ankara, Türkiye, opened with video messages from Hurşit Yildirim, Deputy Minister of Justice of Türkiye, Bjørn Berge, Council of Europe Deputy Secretary General and Kasım Çiçek, Director General for Foreign Relations and European Union Affairs of the Ministry of Justice.
In his opening remarks, the Deputy Secretary General underlined the importance of the specific conventions of the Council of Europe to combat organised crime, money laundering and terrorist financing, in the context of international judicial cooperation. He also emphasised that Türkiye is a long-term state party to many of these conventions, as a valuable and active partner, and expressed the commitment of the Council of Europe to continue supporting Türkiye in implementing these standards through capacity building projects.
In his speech, Mr Yildirim highlighted the efforts being made by Türkiye to enhance domestic practices and to share international best practices with other countries, particularly in the areas having an international scope, such as terrorism, organised crime, human and drug trafficking and cybercrime, where Türkiye plays an active role in the international judicial cooperation, as a party to multilateral international conventions. He also expressed Türkiye's continuing commitment to the principles and values of the Council of Europe.
The five panel sessions focused on the Council of Europe Conventions on international judicial cooperation in criminal matters, the cooperation against transnational organised crime, inter-agency cooperation and information sharing, digital innovations, and collection of electronic evidence using the Budapest Convention's tools and provisions. The project "Improving International Judicial Cooperation in Criminal Matters in Turkey" is co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe. The project's end beneficiary is the Ministry of Justice Directorate General for Foreign Relations and European Union Affairs.
* All reference to Kosovo, whether to the territory, institutions or population, shall be understood in full compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 1244 and without prejudice to the status of Kosovo.
