POLICE-RELATED ACTIVITIES OF FIELD OPERATIONS SOUTH-EASTERN EUROPE In December 2018, the Presence organized three strategic meetings between Albanian border agencies and relevant authorities of neighbor countries. It also organized two meetings on the regional operational level in 2018 for the border management authorities of North Macedonia, as well as three meetings with their Montenegrin counterparts. From 26 to 28 December, following negotiations and the signing of Cross-Border Hot Pursuit Protocols between Albania and its neighbours in 2015, the Presence and border police agencies of Tirana and Prishtinë/Priština co-operated in organizing a "cross-border hot pursuit" simulating exercise at the Morinë border crossing point to test the Cross-Border Hot Pursuit Protocol drafted and negotiated in 2015. Members of the Experts’ Negotiation Working Group and representatives of the prosecution office and of the customs administration attended the event. Altogether, 40 participants were able to familiarize themselves with the legal background and concept of “cross-border hot pursuit”, by sharing the experience of European countries. In addition, participants discussed the co-operation between public order and criminal police and prosecution offices. Counter-Terrorism & P/C VERLT Throughout 2018, the Presence worked towards the institutional development of the Coordination Centre on Countering Violent Extremism (CVE); fostering youth counter-narratives to radicalization leading to violent extremism; and encouraging quality, evidence-based analysis by supporting young researchers working in this area. In February, the Presence organized a three-day workshop on P/C VERLT within the framework of the OSCE project, “Creating platforms of counter-messaging and disengagement to prevent and counter Violent Extremist Radicalization Leading to Terrorism”, which was funded by the British Embassy in Tirana. The aim was to enhance the capacities of Albanian researchers and practitioners to understand and counter violent extremist narratives in the communities recognized by law enforcement agencies as hotspots of violent extremism and radicalization, as well as to support ten Albanian researchers in developing research papers on different themes related to P/C VERLT in Albania. In October and November, the Presence conducted seven workshops on the role of youth in P/C VERLT. Several hot spots were selected and over 140 young people from high schools and universities actively engaged in a full day of interactive discussions and exercises. Using a range of tools, such as presentations, documentaries, games and roleplay, youngsters were encouraged to contemplate the process of radicalization, deconstruct myths and analyse elements of their identity. The workshops aimed to provide them Participants of a training course on the role of youth in preventing and countering violent extremism in Pogradec, Albania, 21 October 2018. (OSCE/Presence in Albania) with tools to better understand concepts of radicalization and violent extremism, the means by which youngsters are affected and what role they can play in prevention efforts in their communities. On 17 and 18 October, the Presence, jointly with TNTD/ATU, organized a regional workshop on CVE and civil society. Fifty policy-makers and civil society representatives from SouthEastern Europe (SEE) participated in the two-day event. The main objective was to launch the guidebook developed by the OSCE on civil society’s role in countering violent extremism, focusing on their interaction with government authorities, the challenges and best practices found in the region. On 20 and 21 November, the Presence, together with the Co-ordination Centre on CVE and UNODC, organized the “National Workshop on Challenges Related to Returning FTFs”. The workshop aimed to promote the national management (technical, human resources and knowledge of risk analysis models) capacities of the BMP to identify potential FTFs at border crossing points, in compliance with international human rights standards. It also provided a platform for around 40 national stakeholders and experts, as well as heads of CVE centres in neighbouring countries, to discuss the challenges in implementing API Systems in the fight against terrorism. Participants shared good practices, compared national strategies and legal provisions, and discussed methods to improve national, regional and international co-operation in dealing with threats originating from FTFs. 47