The Strategic Cooperation Forum has been held by CEPOL in Budapest, Republic of Hungary within the framework of the "The Training and Operational Partnership against Organized Crime" (TOPCOP) project implemented by the European Union (EU) Law Enforcement Training Agency (CEPOL) and the EU Law Enforcement Cooperation Agency (EUROPOL).

The State Customs Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan was represented by the first deputy head, acting head of the General Department of Intelligence and Investigation of the State Customs Committee, Major General of the Customs Service Guloglan Muradli, Head of the Academy of the State Customs Committee (ASCCA), Major General of the Customs Service Gulu Novruzov and the Coordinator for Cooperation, Coordinator of Capacity Building the TOPCOP project Elvin Mejidov.

Within the framework of the TOPCOP project covering the years 2020-2024, implemented in the five Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries (Azerbaijan, Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova, Armenia), a forum is organized at the end of each year to finalize project activities and make key decisions on further activities. The Forum organized in December 2022 was attended by 13 representatives from the law enforcement agencies of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova and Armenia, including the management and staff of CEPOL, the law enforcement agencies of the European Commission and EU member states Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, as well as the representatives of the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI).

The purpose of the forum was to discuss new threats and security challenges arising in the field of organized crime in partner countries and the training and capacity-building partnership required by them, approval of the new training plan of the TOPCOP project for 2023, and the cooperation in the fight against organized crime between the EU and the CIS countries within the framework of the Multidisciplinary European Platform against Criminal Threats ("EMPACT").In the panel sessions organized on topics, the representatives made speeches and presentations on the main issues on the agenda of the Forum.

Delivering a speech on the first day of the forum, the first deputy head, acting head of the General Department of Intelligence and Investigation of the State Customs Committee Guloglan Muradli spoke on the topic of "Threats and new security challenges to the Republic of Azerbaijan", and briefed the participants on the achievements and experience of the Azerbaijani customs authorities the fight against the smuggling of drugs and high-tax cigarettes in 2016-2022. He also emphasized the fact that Azerbaijan has a special role in ensuring regional, European and international security. Stating the fact that TRACECA, North-South, North-East, as well as other numerous and large-scale transport projects, were successfully implemented in Azerbaijan, G. Muradli noted the wide transit opportunities of Azerbaijan.

Speaking on the second day of the forum, the head of the Academy, Gulu Novruzov, provided information on the history of the establishment of the ASCCA, its activities, international cooperation and projects. G.Novruzov emphasized that within the framework of the CEPOL and TOPCOP project, a total of 111 customs service employees of Azerbaijan, among them 78 customs service employees participated in CEPOL's virtual and 34 customs service employees participated in regional and other onsite trainings and were awarded certificates. In the speech, Gulu Novruzov pointed out that within the framework of the project, the new "training of trainers" methodology and the concept of regional training knowledge transfer (cascading of training), implementation of the new training curricula developed in priority areas based on progressive CEPOL and EU practices and standards adapted to national contexts and standards would contribute significantly to the development of the customs training system in Azerbaijan.

It should be noted that the Academy has been a partner institution of the TOPCOP project since May 2021. The project activities serve to strengthen the training potential and opportunities in the field of customs in Azerbaijan and to enhance the skills and capacity of the national customs service bodies in the field of fighting against organized crime. The national coordinating body of the project is the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Within the framework of the project, capacity-building points of contact have been appointed in the Academy of the State Customs Committee (ASCCA) and the Police Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.