Since the IPA2010 project ‘Fighting organized crime and corruption‘, CILC and GIZ have been supporting the authorities on Montenegro to establish closer cooperation with Eurojust. This support has included in recent years legislative advice to bring the Montenegrin data protection legislation in line with the Eurojust requirements, training on data protection issues for Montenegrin law enforcement agencies, monitoring of the data protection observance in the public prosecution offices, training of the Eurojust Contact Points in Montenegro and facilitating contacts with Eurojust at both strategic and operational level. In early May 2016, the hard work of the IPA Montenegro team resulted in the signing of the Eurojust-Montenegro Cooperation Agreement. After the ratification of this agreement, it is now time for its implementation. Under the Cooperation Agreement, Montenegro is among others entitled to have a Liaison Prosecutor at Eurojust, whose task is to facilitate the cooperation with prosecution offices in all EU member states in cases involving Montenegro. Early September 2017, the Montenegrin State Prosecutor appointed Mrs Jelena Djaletic as the first Liaison Prosecutor to Eurojust. Mrs Jelena Djaletic is a state prosecutor at the Higher State Prosecution Office in Podgorica and member of the Steering Committee of the IPA2014 project ‘International Cooperation in Criminal Justice: Prosecutors’ Network of the Western Balkans’. Mrs. Djaletic will start her assignment at Eurojust in early December 2017. To help her prepare for her new job, an introductory meeting took place at Eurojust on 27 September 2017. In the brand new Eurojust building in the Hague, Mrs Djaletic, accompanied by IPA2014 Second Prosecutor, Mr Silvij Sinkovec, and IPA2014 Project Manager International, Mr Eric Vincken, met with Eurojust Vice-President and National Member for Germany, Mr Meyer-Cabri, with External Relations Team Chair and National Member for the Czech Republic, Mr Lukaš Stary, and National Member for Croatia, Mr Josip Čule.
This can certainly be called another milestone in the closer cooperation between Montenegro and the European Union in the fight against organised crime and for more judicial cooperation. The IPA2014 project team is proud to have contributed to this tremendous result. We congratulate the Montenegrin colleagues with this success and wish Mrs Djaletic all the best in fulfilling her new important tasks in The Hague.