site.btaActing Prosecutor General Sarafov Meets EU Counterparts at Hague Forum

Bulgaria’s acting Prosecutor General Borislav Sarafov met with the chief prosecutors of Lithuania and Romania during the 19th Meeting of the Consultative Forum of the Prosecutors General and the Heads of Criminal Prosecutions of the EU Member States (Eurojust Consultative Forum), held in The Hague, Sarafov’s office reported on Friday.

He also met with the delegation of Denmark and its representative at Eurojust, expressing his gratitude for the swift and effective cooperation provided by the Danish judicial authorities in the extradition of a Bulgarian citizen wanted for murder under a European Investigation Order issued by the Bulgarian authorities.

During the Eurojust Consultative Forum, welcome addresses were delivered by Michael Schmid, President of Eurojust, Jacek Bilewicz, Deputy Prosecutor General of Poland, Jan Reckendorff, Director of Public Prosecutions of Denmark, and co-chairs of the Council of Europe, among others.

Ana Gallego Torres, Director-General of DG Justice and Consumers at the European Commission, presented the current state of European Union initiatives in the field of criminal justice.

The two-day forum focused on the criminal law implications of the war in Ukraine, the current status of investigations into the violation or circumvention of EU sanctions against Russia, and the legal frameworks for such offences within the EU.

The prosecutors general agreed that each Member State, as part of the European family, must strive to ensure public security and the stability of the Union in the spirit of democratic values and the rule of law.

The heads of prosecution services from across the EU committed to strengthening cooperation in the field of criminal justice, with particular emphasis on combating organised cross-border crime and accelerating the exchange of best practices among the competent judicial authorities of EU Member States.

On Thursday, as part of his visit to The Hague, Sarafov also met with the Deputy Prosecutor General of Poland. They discussed enhancing judicial cooperation in the fight against cross-border crime.