EN_CPT_AR.book Page 16 Monday, October 25, 2010 5:14 PM CPT General Report 2009-2010 25. The Committee’s contacts with institutions of the European Union (EU) continue to grow. Particular mention might be made of the CPT President’s participation at a Round Table on detention conditions in the EU, organised by the European Commission in December 2009, and at an exchange of views with the European Parliament’s Subcommittee on Human Rights in June 2010. The CPT was also represented at the meeting held in Warsaw on 25 May 2010, on the occasion of the 5th anniversary of FRONTEX. These contacts will no doubt be further intensified in the years to come, all the more so since the Stockholm Programme (laying down the strategic guidelines for future EU action in the area of freedom, security and justice) deals with several issues of relevance for the CPT. One such issue of immediate interest to the CPT is the current work on strengthening procedural rights of suspected and accused persons in criminal proceedings; the Committee is represented at the experts' meetings being organised by the European Commission on this subject. The CPT believes that there is considerable scope for cooperation between the Committee and relevant bodies within the EU institutional framework and that, in due course, the question of accession of the Union to the ECPT might usefully be considered. 26. The CPT has continued to consolidate its relations with the United Nations Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture. The Conference referred to in the following section was part of that process. And the Committee is engaging with the national preventive mechanisms being set up, under the guidance of the Subcommittee, in European States that have ratified the Optional Protocol to the United Nations Convention against Torture. 27. The CPT’s activities are generating interest beyond the boundaries of the Council of Europe. For example, in May 2010, a delegation of Chinese officials and academics visited Strasbourg for an exchange of views with CPT representatives. The following month, a high-level delegation of the Argentine National Public Defender’s Office held detailed discussions on the working methods of preventive mechanisms with the Committee’s Bureau and members of its Secretariat. 28. It should also be mentioned that there is an ever-increasing demand for CPT participation in training activities organised by the Council of Europe and other intergovernmental bodies (e.g. the EU, OSCE, UN and UNHCR) and by nongovernmental organisations. The Committee strives to respond favourably to such requests, notwithstanding budgetary and workload constraints. 16