POLICE-RELATED ACTIVITIES OF FIELD OPERATIONS SOUTH-EASTERN EUROPE Activities Related to Threats Posed by Criminal Activity Organized Crime From 27-28 January, the Mission facilitated a visit of the Vice Prosecutor and Head of Security and IT Resources Service of the Italian Anti-Mafia Directorate to the Serbian Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime. Meetings were held with the Prosecutor for Organized Crime (POOC) and the Assistant to the Minister of Justice in charge of European integration and international projects, to discuss possibilities for enhancing regional co-operation in fighting organized crime and terrorism in the Western Balkans. On 16 March, the Mission, together with the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP), organized a conference on the role of CSOs in countering organized crime. The founder of the German CSO “Mafia? Nein, Danke!” delivered a presentation on best practices of civil societies’ contributions to mobilizing citizens and to raising awareness to counter organized crime. Participants included representatives of the BCSP, the Centre for Investigative Journalism of Serbia, the Serbian government, the Office of the Public Prosecutor, and the Italian Embassy in Belgrade. From 20-22 April, the Mission organized a visit of the Serbian delegation to Europol’s Anti-Counterfeiting Unit to teach participants about the organizational structure and tasks of this unit. The main objective of the visit was to enhance co-operation with Europol regarding the protection against counterfeiting the Euro, as envisaged under the draft Action Plan for Chapter 24 in the European integration process. The delegation comprised of four Serbian police representatives, one representative of the National Bank of Serbia and one Mission staff member. From 28 April-1 May, the Mission supported participation of one DNA expert from the MoI’s National Forensic Centre to take part in the Annual Conference of the European Network of Forensic Science Institutes (ENFSI) in Copenhagen, Denmark, organized by the DNA Working Group of ENFSI. European DNA Profiling (EDNAP) professionals discussed harmonizing the DNA technology for crime investigation and the current trends in this field. From 15-16 July, the Mission organized a study visit for the MoI’s National Forensic Centre staff to UNODC in Vienna in order to receive relevant information about identification and quantification of substances under international control and new psychoactive substances (NPS). Three representatives of the Centre had an opportunity to learn about the UNODC’s scientific and forensic service programmes, international quality assurance programme, and NPS. From 10-11 September, the Mission supported two representatives of the MoI to attend the OSCE Annual Drugs Conference in Vienna. The purpose of the conference was to discuss key issues on combating the threat of illicit drugs, diversion of chemical precursors, and preventive measures aimed at reducing drug abuse and drug related harm in the OSCE area. On 20 October, the MoI officially opened a Specialized Training Centre for dismantling illicit drugs laboratories in Mitrovo Polje, Goc Mountain. This Centre will provide specialized training courses on how to detect and safely dismantle illicit laboratories for the production of psychoactive substances, not only for police officers from Serbia but also from neighbouring countries. The Netherlands, France, and the US donated modern equipment, enabling the Centre to be well-equipped for practical training. The Mission staff attended the opening ceremony. Criminal Investigations and Analysis From 23-27 February, the Mission organized a five-day workshop on the centralization process of the National Integrated Criminal Intelligence System (NICIS) at the Academy for Criminal and Police Studies in Belgrade. An international expert delivered a presentation on the initial phase of the NICIS development in line with the draft Action Plan of the EU acquis Chapter 24. A total of 50 participants included, inter alia, representatives of the MoI, the Ministry of Justice, Organized Crime Prosecutor’s Office, and AntiMoney Laundering Agency. From 23-27 March, the Mission organized a five-day capacitybuilding course for 15 operational analysts from the Service for Crime Analytics, functioning within the MoI’s Criminal Investigation Directorate. A Swedish expert presented the use of the Crime Mapping Model with a focus on ‘hot spot’ analysis of crimes and geographic profiling, as well as modern methodologies for written and verbal presentations of analytical results. From 1-5 June, the Mission organized a criminal intelligence workshop for 35 participants from the MoI, the MoJ, the Ministry of Finance, and the Security Information Agency to improve communication among law enforcement bodies. Workshop topics included, inter alia, the development and operationalization of the NICIS in Serbia. Representatives of the Organized Crime Prosecutor’s Office, the Anti-Money Laundering Agency, the Anti-Corruption Agency, the Military Intelligence Agency, the Military Security Agency, and the police participated in the training. 79