New Horizons of Cooperation Between the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kazakhstan and European Law Enforcement Agencies
Minister of Internal Affairs Yerzhan Sadenov paid a working visit to the French Republic and the Kingdom of the Netherlands, where he held a series of bilateral meetings with the leadership of European and international police structures. The discussions focused on developing cooperation in the field of security and countering new challenges and threats.
In Paris, the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs held talks with the French Minister of the Interior, Bruno Retailleau, during which they reviewed the state of interaction within the framework of the Agreement on Combating Crime, which has been in effect since 2009.
Particular emphasis was placed on issues of readmission and information exchange in the area of migration control. Mutual readiness to implement the Readmission Agreement, signed last year, was confirmed. The French side expressed its willingness to support the procedure for simplifying the visa regime for citizens of Kazakhstan by the countries of the European Union.
Following the bilateral meeting, the parties signed a Road Map to strengthen cooperation in the fight against crime, including transnational organized crime, drug crime, illegal migration, extremism, and internet fraud.
The Kazakh delegation also familiarized itself with the activities of the operational center of the city of Paris, the Special Intervention Unit, and the cyber center of the French Ministry of Internal Affairs.
During the visit to Lyon, the Minister met with the Secretary General of Interpol, Valdecy Urquiza. They discussed areas of practical cooperation, primarily in the field of international search, combating fraud and cybercrime. Issues of improving interaction mechanisms and expanding access to new databases of the organization were touched upon.
The Secretary General of Interpol noted the high level of efficiency of the work of the Kazakh National Central Bureau of Interpol under the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Furthermore, in The Hague, the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kazakhstan met with the Deputy Executive Director of Europol, Andrei Linta. They discussed prospects for cooperation in countering cybercrime, extremism, and illegal migration, as well as issues of information exchange through Europol channels.
An agreement was reached to initiate the process of developing an Operational Agreement between the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan and Europol, which will open a new level of interaction with the police structures of EU member states.
