A workshop was held on the "Training and Operational Partnership against Organized Crime" (TOPCOP) project implemented by the European Union Law Enforcement Training Agency (CEPOL) and the EU Law Enforcement Cooperation Agency (EUROPOL).

The Network Building Workshop on "EMPACT Support Network - Law Enforcement Cooperation Mechanisms," organized by CEPOL, took place in Budapest, Hungary. The workshop was attended by Farid Ahmadov, the head of the department of work with foreign partners of the Directorate General of Investigations and Operations of the State Customs Committee (SCC) of Azerbaijan, and Elvin Mejidov, the coordinator of international cooperation and projects coordinator of the Academy of the State Customs Committee (ASCCA), the coordinator of Capacity Building in the TOPCOP project. The workshop brought together representatives of the EU law enforcement agencies such as EUROPOL, FRONTEX, EUROJUST, and the law enforcement agencies of the Eastern Partnership (EaP) region countries (Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Moldova, Armenia), as well as representatives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The purpose of the event was to strengthen the cooperation between EU law enforcement agencies and the beneficiary countries of the EaP through the EU Multidisciplinary Platform against Criminal Threats (EMPACT) and to provide access to various international programs and tools implemented by EU law enforcement agencies in the field of international cooperation. During the workshop, participants exchanged ideas on support mechanisms for strengthening the training institutions and systems of the beneficiary law enforcement agencies of the EaP countries and delegations presented practical group works.

Workshop participants presented SWOT analysis on training systems and priorities, knowledge transfer opportunities gained from TOPCOP project trainings organized for EaP countries in the direction of detection and prevention of cross-border crimes - in particular, on thematic areas such as illegal drug and firearms trafficking, cybercrime, human trafficking, migrant smuggling as well as other issues.

It is noteworthy that the activities carried out within the framework of the TOPCOP project, set to expire in June 2024, aim to strengthen the training potential and opportunities for Azerbaijan in the field of customs. This will be instrumental in enhancing the knowledge and skills of customs authorities in the fight against organized crime.