The Attorney General of Colombia Francisco Barbosa visited Eurojust yesterday to discuss stepping up cross-border judicial cooperation with EU Member States through the Agency.
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A particular focus was on enhancing cooperation to combat the sharp increase in illicit drug and wildlife trafficking from Colombia to the European Union.
Eurojust handled over 1 100 major drug-trafficking cases last year, which often involved cocaine being illegally transported to the EU by sea from Colombian ports.
Enhancing judicial cooperation in this area will help to combat major drug smuggling, which is one of the three most important types of crime that the Agency deals with.
In 2021, 303 tonnes of cocaine were seized in the EU, with the trend pointing to a further rise in the illicit drug trade.
The trade in protected species is estimated to be the fourth most lucrative type of crime after the trafficking drugs, arms and human beings.
In Colombia alone, around 18 000 birds, animals and reptiles have been seized so far this year, which were destined for illegal trade in the EU and other parts of the world.
Based on figures from the Colombian National Police, this crime type is also on the rise, with a total of 17 000 rare species seized in 2022 before they could be illegally exported.
Both the EU and Colombia will work closely to strengthen existing cooperation in order to combat these rising crime trends.
Eurojust and Colombia already cooperate through the Contact Point established with the judicial authorities in Bogota as a result of the EU-funded EL PAcCTO project.
Colombia is also one of the driving partners in AIAMP.
In view of this, both Vice-President Šniutytė-Daugėlienė and Attorney General Barbosa agreed on the need to promote cooperation between judicial authorities in Ibero-American countries and the EU, also with respect to a Memorandum of Understanding signed between the two parties in July 2022.
Furthermore, Colombia is one of the 13 countries outside the EU with which the European Commission is negotiating an international agreement on cooperation with Eurojust.
The modes of cooperation conceived in the agreement were one of the points discussed during the meeting with the Attorney General. Mr Barbosa was also informed of Eurojust’s cooperation instruments and how the Agency generally cooperates outside the European Union. ■
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