EU NEIGHBOURS. On 6 April, the EU launched a new programme aimed to bolster the capacity of Eastern partner countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine) to trace and confiscate assets linked to organised criminal activity.
The programme will work to improve coordination between national institutions in the region, specifically in financial crime investigations. Part of the programme’s tasks include strengthening the capacity of financial investigators to trace, freeze, seize, confiscate and recover assets in the hands of organised crime rings.
Lawrence Meredith, Director for Neighbourhood East in the European Commission, indicated that the initiative marks “a significant step forward in the EU’s support for Eastern Partnership countries in addressing their needs to counter many different forms of organised criminal activity, including drug trafficking, human trafficking and migrant smuggling.”
The three-year programme will receive €1.5 million from the EU, and will be carried out in close coordination with officials throughout the six countries.
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