Ministers’ Deputies

CM Documents

CM(2006)219     11 December 2006[1]

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985 Meeting, 31 January 2007
10 Legal questions

10.5 High-level Conference of the Ministries of Justice and of the Interior
Improving European Co-operation in the Criminal Justice Field, Moscow (Russian Federation), 9‑10 November 2006 (Summary of the discussions)

Information document prepared by the Directorate General of Legal Affairs (DGI) for consideration by the GR-J at its meeting on 10 January 2007

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Summary of the discussions

Introduction

1.       A high-level Conference of the Ministries of Justice and of the Interior, organised jointly by the Council of Europe and the Russian Ministries of Justice and of the Interior within the framework of the co-operation programme, took place in Moscow on 9 and 10 November 2006.  The theme was ”Improving European Co-operation in the Criminal Justice Field”. The list of participants, the programme and the conclusions which were adopted appear in appendices I-III of this report.

2.       The opening session was chaired by Mr Vladimir V. USTINOV, Minister of Justice of the Russian Federation.  Opening speeches were made by Mrs Maud de BOER-BUQUICCHIO, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Mr Viktor P. IVANOV, Presidential Aide, representing President Putin, Ambassador Bruno GAIN, Permanent Representative of France to the Council of Europe and representative of the Committee of Ministers, Mr Ivan BIZJACK, Director General of Justice and Home Affairs of the Council of the European Union.

The conference was closed by Mr Vladimir V. USTINOV and by Mr Guy DE VEL, Director General of Legal Affairs of the Council of Europe.

Summary of the working groups

3.       Four working groups took place which were chaired by: Mr Vladimir V. USTINOV, Minister of Justice of the Russian Federation, Ms Kirsti RISSANEN, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice of Finland, Ms Brigitte ZYPRIES, Minister of Justice of Germany, Mr Juan Fernando LOPEZ AGUILAR, Minister of Justice of Spain.

4.       The discussions were preceded by the presentation of reports.

For the first session the rapporteurs were:

-     Mr Yuri CHAÏKA, Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation;

-     Mr Fikrat MAMMADOV, Minister of Justice of Azerbaijan;

-     Mr Eugenio SELVAGGI, Prosecutor (Italy), former Chairman of the Committee of Experts on the operation of European Conventions on co-operation in criminal matters (PC-OC).

The Rapporteur of the second session was Mr Anastasis PAPALIGOURAS, Minister of Justice of Greece.  For the third session the Rapporteur was Mr Alberto MARITATI, Under-Secretary of State for Justice, Italy, and the Rapporteur of the fourth session was Mr Guy DE VEL, Director General of Legal Affairs.

The text of their reports can be consulted on the Council of Europe web site.

Resolution

The participants adopted conclusions (Appendix III) which underline the need to improve the efficiency of international co-operation in criminal matters in order to prevent and effectively combat criminality while ensuring respect of the European Convention on Human Rights. They welcomed the significant achievements of the Council of Europe in this domain, in particular through the work of the European Committee on Crime Problems (CDPC).  They support the essential role of the Committee of Experts on the operation of European conventions on co-operation in criminal matters (PC-OC) in monitoring the application of the Council of Europe conventions on international co-operation in criminal matters in order to find solutions to concrete problems, accelerate procedures and prevent disputes between state.  The participants encouraged the Council of Europe to put into place different measures, practical as well as normative, in order to improve co-operation in the criminal field.

They also invited those member states which have not already done so to become Parties to the Council of Europe instruments in force which facilitate international co-operation as well as the fight against terrorism and organised crime.

The conclusions encourage the Organisation to continue facilitating the transfer of sentenced persons in application of the Council of Europe instruments and to follow closely the developments in the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights as well as in the European Union in this matter, and to analyse the feasibility of an extension in the Council of Europe context of any provisions which may be adopted by the European Union.

The work of the Council of Europe against sexual exploitation and abuse of children and the preliminary work on counterfeit medicines and pharmaceutical crimes was supported by the participants.  The importance of monitoring mechanisms on the application of conventions was also raised, for the consistent and effective application of the relevant standards.

Action

The Ministers' Deputies are invited to support the work carried out by the CDPC and its subordinate Committees aimed at implementing the conclusions adopted at the conference and to request the CDPC to report to them on the status of this work after its next plenary session.

Appendix I

Provisional list of participants

MEMBER STATES

ALBANIA

Ministry of Justice

Mr Aldo BUMÇI, Minister of Justice, TIRANA

Mr Arben BRACE, Director, TIRANA

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Gjergj LEZHJA, Vice-Minister, TIRANA

Mr Helidon BEKTESHI, Head of Sector, TIRANA

ARMENIA

Mr Davit HARUTYUNYAN, Minister of Justice, YEREVAN

Mr Anatolih MATEVOSYAN, Deputy Minister of Justice, YEREVAN

Mr Hovhannes VARYAN, Deputy Chief of Police, YEREVAN

Mr Gevorg VOSKANYAN, Head of the International Co-operation Department of the Police, YEREVAN

AUSTRIA

Ms Karin GASTINGER, Minister of Justice, VIENNA

Ms Barbara GOETH-FLEMMICH, Head of Department, VIENNA

Mr Bernhard PUSTER, Member of the Ministers Cabinet, VIENNA

Mr Fritz SCHERMANN, Austrian Embassy to the Russian Federation, MOSCOW

Mr Michael SCHOEN, Ministry of Justice, VIENNA

AZERBAIJAN

Ministry of Justice

Mr Fikrat MAMMADOV, Minister of Justice, BAKU

Mr Adil ABILOV, Assistant Minister of Justice, BAKU

Mr Azar JAFAROV, Director, General Department of Organisation and Supervision, BAKU

Ministry of the Interior

Mr. Ramil USUBOV, Minister of Interior, BAKU

Mr. Valentin DJUMAZADE, Deputy Director of International Cooperation Department, BAKU

Mr. Bagif SHARIFOV, Plenipotentiary Representative of the Ministry of Interior of Azerbaijan in the Russian Federation, MOSCOW

Mr. Ruslan HAGIYEV, Director of the International Relations Department, General Prosecutors Office, BAKU

Mr. Nizami SAFAROV, Director of the Department on Administrative and Military Law, Parliament Secretariat, BAKU

BELGIUM

Ministry of Justice

M. Jean-Yves MINE, Responsable du Service pénal international, BRUXELLES

Ministry of the Interior

M. Patrick DEWAEL, Vice-Premier Ministre et Ministre de l’Intérieur, BRUXELLES (Apologised)

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

Ministry of Justice

Mr Slobodan KOVAC, Minister of Justice of Bosnia and Herzegovina, SARAJEVO

Mr Željka TOŠIĆ, Interpreter, SARAJEVO

Ministry of Security

Mr Bariša ČOLAK, Minister of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina, SARAJEVO

Mr Samir RIZVO, Assistant Minister, SARAJEVO

Ministry of Justice of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Ms Borjana KRISTO, Minister of Justice, SARAJEVO

Ministry of the Interior of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Ms Mevludin HALILOVIĆ, Minister of the Interior, SARAJEVO

Ms Amira DJOZO, Interpreter, SARAJEVO

Ministry of Justice of Republika Srpska

Mr Omer VIŠIĆ, Minister of Justice, BANJA LUKA

Ministry of the Interior of Republika Srpska

Mr Stanislav ČADO, Minister of the Interior, BANJA LUKA

Mr Stevo IVETIĆ, Chief of Cabinet, BANJA LUKA

Mr Slaven ROSIĆ, Inspector, BANJA LUKA

BULGARIA

Ministry of Justice

Mr Georgi PETKANOV, Minister of Justice, SOFIA

Ms Ana KARAIVANOVA-DAVIDOVA, Deputy Minister of Justice, SOFIA

Ms Vesselinka MALEVA, Head of the International Legal Assistance Department, International Co-operation and European Integration Directorate, SOFIA

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Rumen PETKOV, Minister of Interior, SOFIA

Mr Boyko KOTZEV, Deputy Minister of Interior, SOFIA

Mr Rumen TOSHEV, JHA Counsellor, SOFIA

Ms Evelina TCHORBADJISHKA, Head of Department, SOFIA

Mr Plamen GROZDANOV, Ambassador, Bulgarian Embassy to the Russian Federation, MOSCOW

CROATIA

Ministry of Justice

Ms Ana LOVRIN, Minister of Justice, ZAGREB

Ms Natalija HMELINA, Head of the Cabinet, ZAGREB

Ms Ljiljana VODOPIJA-ČENGIĆ, Assistant Minister, Directorate for International Legal Assistance, Cooperation and Human Rights, ZAGREB

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Ivica KIRIN, Minister of the Interior, ZAGREB

Mr Marijan BENKO, General Police Director, ZAGREB

Ms Tatjana HRESTAK, Interpreter, ZAGREB

Mr Ognjen KRAJAČIĆ, Secretary of the Ministers Cabinet, ZAGREB

Mr Berislav MANCE, Head of the International Relations Department, ZAGREB

CYPRUS

Ministry of Justice and Public Order

Mr Sophocles SOPHOCLEOUS, Minister of Justice and Public Order, NICOSIA

CZECH REPUBLIC

Ministry of Justice

Mr Roman POLÁŠEK, Deputy Minister, PRAGUE

Mr Robert KOPECKÝ, Expert, International Department, PRAGUE

DENMARK

Ministry of Justice

Mr Kristian Korfits NIELSEN, Head of Division, COPENHAGEN

Mr Per FIIG, Head of Section, COPENHAGEN

ESTONIA

Ministry of Justice

Mr Rein LANG, Minister of Justice, TALLINN

Ms Imbi MARKUS, Head of International Judicial Co-operation Unit, TALLINN

Ms Kristi VÄRK, TALLINN

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Kalle LAANET, Minister of the Interior, TALLINN

Mr Kalev TIMBERG, Deputy Secretary General, TALLINN

FINLAND

Ministry of Justice

Ms Kirsti RISSANEN, Permanent Secretary, HELSINKI

Ms Merja NORROS, Director, HELSINKI

Ministry of the Interior

Ms Marja KARTILA, Inspector General of the Police, Police Department, HELSINKI

FRANCE

Ministère de la Justice

M. Eric RUELLE, Chargé de Mission pour les négociations pénales internationales, Direction des affaires criminelles et des grâces, PARIS

Ministère de l’Intérieur

Mme Dara SIN, Ministère de l’Intérieur et de l’Aménagement du territoire, PARIS

Mme Agnès LALARDRIE, Conseiller pour les affaires juridiques et judiciaires, Ambassade de France, MOSCOU

GEORGIA

Ministry of Justice

Mr Gia KAVTARADZE, Minister of Justice, TBILISSI

Mr George PANIASHVILI, Head of International Relations Co-ordination Division, Department of International Legal Relations, TBILISSI

GERMANY

Ministry of Justice

Ms Brigitte ZYPRIES, Federal Minister of Justice, BERLIN

Mr Thomas DITTMANN, Federal Ministry of Justice, BERLIN

Mr Hans-Holger HERRNFELD, Federal Ministry of Justice, BERLIN

Mr Ralf KLEINDIEK, Federal Ministry of Justice, BERLIN

Ms Eva SCHMIERER, Federal Ministry of Justice, BERLIN

Ms Irina ZINKE, Interpreter, BERLIN

Ministry of the Interior

              (Apologised)

GREECE

Ministry of Justice

Mr Anastasios PAPALIGOURAS, Minister of Justice, ATHENS

Mr Angelo ANDROULIDAKIS, Special Adviser, ATHENS

Ms Evdokia KOLPONDINOU-BOUNTOURA, Director General, ATHENS

Mr Vassilios KOSTIS, Minister Counsellor, Greek Embassy to the Russian Federation, MOSCOW

Mr Dimitrios SKOURAS, Managing Director, ATHENS

Ministry of Public Order

Mr Vyron G. POLYDORAS, Minister of Public Order, ATHENS

Ms Margarita POLYDORAS, Secretary, ATHENS

Mr Spyridon SKLAVOS, Minister Adjutant, ATHENS

Mr Stafanos SKOTIS, Head of Security and Order Branch, ATHENS

Mr Panagiotis STATHIS, Hellenic Police Spokesman, ATHENS

HUNGARY

Ministry of Justice

Ms Judit LÉVAYNÉ FAZEKAS, State Secretary, BUDAPEST

Ms Nóra KOVÁCS, Expert, BUDAPEST

ICELAND

Mr Benedikt ÁSGEIRSSON, Ambassador, Icelandic Embassy to the Russian Federation, MOSCOW

Dr Magnus K. Hannesson, Minister Counsellor, Icelandic Embassy to the Russian Federation, MOSCOW

IRELAND

Department of Justice, Equality & Law Reform

Ms Valerie FALLON, Principal Officer, International Policy Division, DUBLIN

Mr Paul MEMERY, First Secretary, Permanent Representation of Ireland to the Council of Europe, STRASBOURG

ITALY

Ministry of Justice

Mr Alberto MARITATI, Under Secretary of State for Justice, ROME

Mr Gian Lorenzo CORNADO, Adviser, ROME

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Nicola DE BIASI, ROME

LATVIA

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Ilze PĒTERSONE, Deputy State Secretary, RIGA

Mr Viesturs BRIEDIS, Councillor, Embassy of Latvia to the Russian Federation, MOSCOW

Ms Tija RINMANE, Director, Department of European Affairs and International Co-operation, RIGA

Mr Artis ZIDERS, Chief of International Co-operation Department, Central Criminal Police Department, RIGA

LIECHTENSTEIN

Ministry of Justice

Mr Klaus TSCHÜTSCHER, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Justice, VADUZ (Apologised)

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Martin MEYER, Minister of the Interior, VADUZ (Apologised)

LITHUANIA

Ministry of Justice

Mr Petras BAGUŠKA, Minister of Justice, VILNIUS

Mr Vytautas BARKAUSKAS, Prosecutor, VILNIUS

Ms Laima ČEKELIENE, Prosecutor, VILNIUS

Mr Arūnas KAZLAUSKAS, VILNIUS

Ministry of Interior

Mr Raimondas ŠUKYS, Minister of the Interior, VILNIUS

Mr Stanislovas LIUTKEVIČIUS, Secretary, VILNIUS

Mr Olegas SKINDERSKIS, Director, VILNIUS

MOLDOVA

Mme Elena MOCANU, Vice-ministre, CHIŞINÁU

MONACO

Ministry of Justice / Conseil d’Etat

M. Philippe NARMINO, Président du Conseil d’Etat, Directeur des Services Judiciaires, MONACO

M. Laurent ANSELMI, Conseiller au Cabinet de SAS le Prince, MONACO

Ministry of the Interior / Département de l’Intérieur

M. Paul MASSERON, Conseiller de Gouvernement pour l’Intérieur, MONACO (Apologised)

NETHERLANDS

Ministry of Justice

Mr Joris DEMMINK, Secretary-General, Deputy Minister of Justice, THE HAGUE

Mr Marcel CRAMWINCKEL, Director of Legal and Operational Affairs, THE HAGUE

Mr Alexander KONING, Head of Department for Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters, THE HAGUE

Mr Hendrik REMEIJN, Senior Policy Officer, European and International Affairs Department, THE HAGUE

NORWAY

Ministry of Justice

Mr Knut STORBERGET, Minister of Justice, OSLO

Ms Liv Christina Houck EGSETH, Adviser, OSLO

Ms Guro Glaerum KLEPPE, Adviser, OSLO

Mr Morten RUUD, Secretary General, OSLO

Mr Oyvind Sotvik REKSTAD, Second Secretary, Royal Norwegian Embassy to the Russian Federation, MOSCOW

Mr NORDSLETTEN, Royal Norwegian Embassy to the Russian Federation, MOSCOW

POLAND

Ministry of Justice

Mr Jerzy ENGELKING, Deputy Prosecutor General, Prosecutor General’s Office, WARSAW

Mr Józef GEMRA, Prosecutor, Prosecutor General’s Office, WARSAW

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Przemislav BASZAK, Head of Department, WARSAW

Mr Pavel CHOMENTOWSKI, WARSAW

PORTUGAL

Ministry of Justice

Mr Joǎo SILVEIRA, Secretary of State, LISBON

Mr Luis GOES, Deputy, LISBON

ROMANIA

Ministry of Justice

Mr Florin Razvan RADU, Director, Directorate of International Law and Treaties, BUCHAREST

Ministry of Administration and the Interior

Mr Alexandru MIRCEA, Secretary of State, BUCHAREST

Mr Nicolae Dragoş PLOESTEANU, Head of Department, BUCHAREST

Ms Vilhelmina LUCINESCU, Expert, BUCHAREST

RUSSIAN FEDERATION

Ministry of Justice

Mr Vladmir V. USTINOV, Minister of Justice, MOSCOW

Mr Nickolaï I. SAVCHENKO, Deputy Minister of Justice, MOSCOW

Mr Robert A. ADELKHANYAN, Director, Department of International Law and Co-operation, MOSCOW

Mr Arkady V. TONKOGLAS, Deputy Director, Department of International Law and Co-operation, MOSCOW

Mr Igor V. POHOMOV, Deputy Director, Department of International Law and Co-operation, MOSCOW

Mr Pavel V. IVLIEV, Deputy Director, Department of International Law and Co-operation, MOSCOW

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Rashid G. NOURGALIEV, Minister of the Interior, MOSCOW

Office of the Prosecutor General

Mr Yuri CHAIKA, Prosecutor General, MOSCOW

SERBIA

Ministry of Justice

Mr Zoran STOJKOVIC, Minister of Justice, BELGRADE

Mr Vladimir DAVIDOVIC, Head of Department for International Co-operation and European Integration, BELGRADE

Ms Vera KOLAREVIC, Chief of the Private Office of the Minister, BELGRADE

Ms Mirjana SRDANOV, Interpreter, BELGRADE

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Dragan JOČIĆ, Minister of the Interior, BELGRADE

Ms Mirjana ORASANIN, State Secretary, BELGRADE

Mr Drazen MARAVIC, Head of the Bureau for International Co-operation and EU Integration, BELGRADE

SLOVAK REPUBLIC

Ministry of Justice

Mr Štefan HARABIN, Deputy Prime Minister, BRATISLAVA

Mr Branislav BOHACIK, Director, Division for Judicial Co-operation in Criminal Matters, BRATISLAVA

Mrs Jana VNUKOVA, Deputy Director General, International and European Law Department, BRATISLAVA

SLOVENIA

Ministry of Justice

Mr Lovro ŠTURM, Minister of Justice, LJUBLJANA

Mr Janko KOREN, Chief of Staff, LJUBLJANA

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Dragutin MATE, Minister of the Interior, LJUBLJANA

SPAIN

Ministry of Justice

M. Juan Fernando LÓPEZ AGUILAR, Ministre de la Justice, MADRID

Mme Ana Maria DE MIGUEL LANGA, Vice-Ministre de la Justice, MADRID

M. Valentin DUEÑAS JIMINEZ, Conseiller international du Ministre, MADRID

M. David GLÜCK, Directeur du Cabinet du Ministre, MADRID

SWEDEN

Ministry of Justice

Ms Ann-Marie BOLIN-PENNEGÅRD, Ambassador, Division for Criminal Cases and Judicial Cooperation, STOCKHOLM

Mr Håkan FRIMAN, Deputy Director, STOCKHOLM

Mr Ola LÔFGREN, Chief Prosecutor, Office of the Prosecutor General, STOCKHOLM

Ms Anna LYBERG, Second Secretary, Embassy of Sweden to the Russian Federation, MOSCOW

SWITZERLAND

M. Rudolf WYSS, Sous-directeur de l’Office fédéral de la justice, Chef de la Division de l’entraide judiciaire internationale, BERNE

M. Lukas BEGLINGER, Ambassadeur-Ministre, Ambassade de Suisse, MOSCOU

M. Patrick FRANZEN, Premier Secrétaire, Ambassade de Suisse, MOSCOU

 “THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA”

Ministry of Justice

Mr Mihajlo MANEVSKI, Minister of Justice, SKOPJE (Apologised)

Mr Saso VABILEVSKI, Deputy Minister of Justice, SKOPJE

Ms Gorica ATANASOVA, Head of Delegation, SKOPJE

Ministry of the Interior

Ms Gordana JANKULOSKA, Minister of the Interior, SKOPKE

TURKEY

Ministry of Justice

Mr Cemil CICEK, Minister of Justice, ANKARA

Ms Ayben IYISOY, Judge, ANKARA

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Abdulkadir AKSU, Minister of the Interior, ANKARA (Apologised)

UKRAINE

Ms Inna YEMELIYANOVA, Deputy Minister of Justice, KIEV

Ms Tetyana SHORSTKA, Head of the Division on execution of international instruments in criminal matters, Department of International Co-operation, KIEV

UNITED KINGDOM

The Rt Hon Lord Falconer of Thoroton, Secretary of State and Lord Chancellor, LONDON (Apologised)

Mr Richard BRADLEY, Head of the Judicial Co-operation Unit, Home Office, LONDON

*  *  *  *  *

EUROPEAN COMMUNITY

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Ms Helge Elisabeth ZEITLER, BRUSSELS

General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union /

Mr Ivan BIZJAK, Director General – DGH, BRUSSELS

EUROJUST

Mr Michael G. KENNEDY, President, THE HAGUE (Apologised)

*  *  *  *  *

OBSERVERS

CANADA

Mrs Elaine KRIVEL, QC, BRUSSELS

Ms Leslie Erin McKEY, Ministry of Justice, OTTAWA

Mr Gareth David SANSOM, Ministry of Justice, OTTAWA

HOLY SEE

            (Apologised)

JAPAN

            (Apologised)

MEXICO

Mr Guillermo VALLS ESPONDA, Legal Attaché, MADRID

Mr Carlos Maria ABASCAL CARRANZA, Secretario de Gobernación, MEXICO (Apologised)

MONTENEGRO

Ministry of Justice

Ms Branka LAKOCEVIC, Deputy Minister of Justice, PODGORICA

Ms Vesna RACKOVIC, PODGORICA

Mr Vuksan VUKSANOVIC, International Co-operation Officer, PODGORICA

Ministry of the Interior

Mr Svetozar DJUROVIC, Assistant to the Minister of the Interior, PODGORICA

Mr Ivan MILIĆ, Adviser, PODGORICA

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Mr Thomas BURROWS, Associate Director, Office of International Affairs, Criminal Division, Department of Justice, WASHINGTON, DC

*  *  *  *  *

COMMITTEE OF MINISTERS

Mr Bruno GAIN, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of France to the Council of Europe, Chairman of the Rapporteur Group on Legal Cooperation (GR-J), STRASBOURG

PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY - COMMITTEE ON LEGAL AFFAIRS AND HUMAN RIGHTS /

M. Valery GREBENNIKOV, membre de la Commission

EUROPEAN COMMITTEE ON CRIME PROBLEMS (CDPC)

M. Claude DEBRULLE, Directeur Général, Direction Générale de la Législation, des Libertés, et Droits fondamentaux, BRUXELLES     Chairman of the CDPC (Apologised)

Mr Branislav BOHACIK, Director, Division for Judicial Co-operation in Criminal Matters, BRATISLAVA

              Vice-Chairman of the CDPC

COMMITTEE OF EXPERTS ON TERRORISM (CODEXTER)

Ms Marja LEHTO, Director, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, HELSINKI

            Chair of the CODEXTER

*  *  *  *  *

International Organisations /

UNITED NATIONS

Mr Sergey KAREV, Head of ATAO, Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, NEW YORK, NY

Mr Francisco Javier MARTINEZ SANCUIZ, Legal Officer, Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, RYE, NY

INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT (ICC)

            (Apologised)

I.C.P.O. INTERPOL

            (Apologised)

NORDIC COUNCIL OF MINISTERS

Ms Kristin ÓLAFSDÓTTIR, Senior Adviser, COPENHAGEN

Mr Per UNCKEL, Secretary General, COPENHAGEN (Apologised)

ORGANIsATION FOR SECURITY AND CO-OPERATION IN EUROPE (OSCE) /

Mr Manuel MARION MAINER, Deputy Head, Strategic Police Matters Unit (SPMU), VIENNA

*  *  *  *  *

RAPPORTEURS

Mr Yuri CHAIKA, Prosecutor General, Office of the Prosecutor General, MOSCOW

Mr Guy DE VEL, Director General of Legal Affairs, Council of Europe, STRASBOURG

Mr Fikrat MAMMADOV, Minister of Justice, BAKU

Mr Albero MARITATI, Under Secretary of State for Justice, Ministry of Justice, ROME

Mr Anastasios PAPALIGOURAS, Minister of Justice, ATHENS

Mr Eugenio SELVAGGI, Deputy District Attorney General, Procura Generale presso la Corte di Appello, ROME

*  *  *  *  *

Secretariat General of the Council of Europe

Ms Maud DE BOER-BUQUICCHIO                Deputy Secretary General

Directorate General I – Legal Affairs

M. Guy DE VEL                                           Director General of Legal Affairs

Ms Margaret KILLERBY                               Head of the Department of Crime Problems

Ms Bridget O’LOUGHLIN                              Head of the Criminal Justice Division

Ms Anna CAPELLO-BRILLAT                        Head of the Division for the judiciary and programmes

Mr Arkadi SYTINE                                        Adviser for legal co-operation programmes for the Russian Federation, Division for the Judiciary and Programmes

M. Humbert DE BIOLLEY                             Head of the Criminal Standards Unit

Mme Catherine GALLAIS                              Principal Administrative Assistant

Mme Odile GEBHARTH                                Assistant

Mme Dominique WULFRAN                         Assistant

Ms Elena HEDOUX                                      Assistant

Private Office of the Secretaries General

M. Gianluca ESPOSITO                               Adviser

Protocol

Mme Isabelle FLECKSTEINER                      Administrative Assistant

Directorate of Communication

Mme Estelle STEINER                                 Press Attaché

M. Alban BODINEAU                                   Photographer

            Interpreters

Ms Barbara GRUT, Head of the Interpreters Team

Mme Valentina ANUFRIEVA

Mr Ruben BAYBURTYAN

M. Boris GORBENKO

Mme Irène MARKOWICZ

M. Pavel PALAZHCHENKO

Mme Anna TUNEVA

Appendix II

Programme

Thursday 9 November 2006

08h 30-09h 30    Registration of participants

09h 30              Opening session - open to the media until 10h15

Chair: Mr Vladimir Vassilievitch USTINOV, Minister of Justice of the Russian Federation

Opening addresses by:

- Mr Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, represented by Mr Viktor PetrovicIvanov, Aide to the President

- Ms Maud de BOER-BUQUICCHIO, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe

- Ambassador Bruno GAIN, Permanent Representative of France to the Council of Europe, Representative of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe

- Mr Ivan BIZJAK, Director  General DGH – Council of the European Union

10h 15              First session

Towards an improvement of the efficiency of the operation of the European Conventions on judicial co-operation in criminal matters: the need to modernise the European mechanisms on extradition and on mutual assistance

Chair: Mr Vladimir Vassilievitch USTINOV, Minister of Justice of the Russian Federation

Rapporteurs:

- Mr Yuri CHAIKA, Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation

- Mr Fikrat MAMMADOV, Minister of Justice of Azerbaijan

- Mr Eugenio Selvaggi (Italy), Former Chair of the Committee of Experts on the Operation of European Conventions on co-operation in criminal matters (PC-OC)

                        General discussion

                        Concluding remarks on the first session by the Chair

11h 30              Coffee-break

11h 45              Second session

Towards an improvement of the efficiency of the operation of the European Conventions on judicial co-operation in criminal matters: settlement of disputes concerning the interpretation or the application of the Conventions

Chair: Mrs Kirsti RISSANEN, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice of Finland

Rapporteur:    Mr Anastasis PAPALIGOURAS, Minister of Justice of Greece

                    

                        General discussion

                        Concluding remarks on the second session by the Chair

12h 40              Luncheon hosted by the Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Ms Maud de BOER-BUQUICCHIO, for the Ministers and Heads of Delegation

                       

                        Luncheon hosted by the authorities of the Russian Federation, for the other participants

14h 40              Third session

The operation of the European Conventions to fight specific crimes: European co-operation

Chair: Ms Brigitte ZYPRIES, Minister of Justice of Germany

Rapporteur: Mr Alberto Maritati, Under Secretary of State for Justice of Italy

Reaction by: Mr Rashid G. Nourgaliev, Minister of the Interior of the Russian Federation

                       

General discussion

                        Concluding remarks on the third session by the Chair

16h 15              Coffee-break

16h 45              Fourth session

The mechanisms of monitoring and control of the operation of the criminal Conventions

                        Chair: Mr Juan Fernando López Aguilar, Minister of Justice of Spain

                        Rapporteur: Mr Guy DE VEL, Director General of Legal Affairs of the Council of Europe

                        General discussion

                        Concluding remarks on the fourth session by the Chair

17h 40              End of the first day Sessions

                        Dinner hosted by the Minister of Justice of the Russian Federation, Mr Vladimir Vassilievitch USTINOV, for all the participants

Friday 10 November 2006

Closing of the conference

Chair: Mr Vladimir Vassilievitch USTINOV, Minister of Justice of the Russian Federation

09h 30              General discussion

10h 30              Adoption of the conclusions

11h 00              Closing remarks:

                        - Representative of the Russian Federation

                        - Representative of the Council of Europe

11h 30              Press conference

Afternoon         Social programme for all the participants

Appendix III

Conclusions

Improving European Co-operation in the Criminal Justice Field

1.            The Ministers of Justice and of the Interior and Heads of Delegation taking part in the Conference on “Improving European Co-operation in the Criminal Justice Field” (Moscow, 9-10 November 2006),

2.            Referring to the Warsaw Declaration adopted by the Heads of State and Government at their Third Summit in May 2005, which proclaims: “we will further develop legal co-operation within the Council of Europe with a view to better protecting our citizens and to realising on a continental scale the aims enshrined in its Statute”;

3.            Referring also to the Action Plan adopted by the Summit and which provides for strengthening the security of European citizens notably by combating terrorism, corruption and organised crime, trafficking in human beings and cybercrime as well as to the Resolution adopted by the Third High-level multilateral meeting of the Ministries of the Interior in Warsaw in March 2005 on the fight against terrorism and organised crime to improve security in Europe;

4.            Bearing in mind the provision of this same Action Plan whereby “we will make full use of the Council of Europe’s standard-setting potential and promote implementation and further development of the Organisation’s legal instruments and mechanisms of legal co-operation, keeping in mind the conclusions of the 26th Conference of European Ministers of Justice (Helsinki, 7-8 April 2005)” and also the conclusions adopted at the 7thSession of the Conference of Prosecutors General of Europe (Moscow, 5-6 July 2006);

5.            Convinced of the Council of Europe’s essential role in developing a common legal area based on respect for human rights and the rule of law;

6.            Bearing in mind the significant number of the Council of Europe treaties in the criminal justice field (currently over thirty), in particular the conventions on extradition and mutual assistance in criminal matters and their additional protocols, which have provided the basis for legal co-operation in criminal matters in Europe for almost 50 years;

7.            Underline the need to improve the efficiency of international co-operation in criminal matters in order to prevent and effectively combat criminality while ensuring respect of the European Convention on Human Rights, and welcome the significant achievements of the Council of Europe in this domain, in particular through the work of the European Committee on Crime Problems (CDPC);

8.            Support the essential role of the Committee of Experts on the operation of European conventions on co-operation in criminal matters (PC-OC) in monitoring the application of the Council of Europe conventions on international co-operation in criminal matters in order to find solutions to concrete problems, accelerate procedures and prevent disputes between States;

9.            Encourage the Council of Europe:

a.         to put in place various practical measures to this end:

1.         in particular, they support the idea that a network of national contact points be developed in order to facilitate contacts between those responsible for international judicial co-operation, notably in the areas of combating terrorism, corruption and organised crime, trafficking in human beings and cybercrime;

2.         they also support the establishment of a database of procedures in force in the member States concerning the various types of co-operation which would allow for easier access to this information;

3.         they furthermore invite the States party to the co-operation conventions to continue their exchanges of good practices;

b.         to continue the efforts to improve the operation of the main conventions regulating international co-operation in criminal matters, in particular those regarding extradition (as well as mutual legal assistance and transfer of criminal proceedings), in order to identify the difficulties encountered and to consider the need for any new instruments;

10.          Agree that the Council of Europe’s instruments offer possibilities for the friendly settlement of disputes arising from the application of the conventions. They encourage the PC-OC to strengthen its role in preventing disputes, taking into account, in particular, the nature and content of such disputes and, wherever necessary, to submit proposals to the  CDPC, in consultation with the Committee of legal advisers on public international law (CAHDI), to improve the settlement procedures;

11.          Call on the PC-OC to continue facilitating the transfer of sentenced persons in application of the Council of Europe instruments and to follow closely the developments in the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights as well as in the European Union in this matter, and to analyse the feasibility of an extension in the Council of Europe context of any provisions which may be adopted by the European Union; they also support the Council of Europe’s actions under way in the penitentiary field, which aim at improving the standards of detention and which thus facilitate international co-operation in this field;

12.          Consider that for the PC-OC to be able to fulfil adequately its role in this domain, regular meetings of the Committee should be ensured;

13.          Call on the Committee of Experts on Terrorism (CODEXTER) to continue its effective work to identify the existing lacunae in international law or action on the fight against terrorism, as well as to pursue ongoing activities, in particular the drawing up of the Country profiles on counter-terrorist capacity covering, inter alia, international co-operation in this area;

14.          Call on those States which have not already done so to sign and ratify at the earliest opportunity the relevant Council of Europe conventions, in particular the Protocol amending the European Convention on the suppression of terrorism, the Conventions on the prevention of terrorism, on laundering, search seizure and confiscation of the proceeds from crime and on the financing of terrorism as well as on action against trafficking in human beings, so that they can enter into force without delay;

15.          Call on those States which have not already done so to become Parties, in conformity with their national procedures, to the Convention on Cybercime so as to ensure the broadest possible application of the co-operation machinery it provides for and invite the CODEXTER to continue its examination of the issue of cyberterrorism;

16.          Call also for the signature and ratification of the Second Additional Protocol to the European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters, which provides a legal basis for increased co-operation between States using methods suited to combating modern types of crime;

17.          Support the current work on drafting a convention to criminalise the sexual exploitation of children and observe with interest the preparatory work for a possible binding legal instrument on counterfeit medicines and pharmaceutical crimes, in particular following the international conference held on the issue in Moscow on 23 and 24 October 2006; they reiterate the importance of international co-operation to combat these evils;

  

18.          Welcome the positive results of the assistance activities conducted by the Council of Europe in its member States with a view to promoting, notably through legislative and institutional reforms as well as training programmes, international co-operation and the application of European instruments in this area; they note, in particular, the many activities and co-operation programmes conducted in certain member States and in certain regions; they encourage the Council of Europe to continue and expand, to the extend possible, these activities;

19.          Welcome the results achieved by the monitoring bodies in the criminal field such as the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) and the Select Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures (MONEYVAL) and, with the perspective of setting up monitoring mechanisms as provided for in the above-mentioned conventions (in the fields of money-laundering, terrorism and trafficking in human beings), underline their importance for the consistent and effective application of the relevant standards;

20.       Express their warmest thanks to the authorities of the Russian Federation for the excellent organisation and success of this Conference in the context of the Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, and for their generous hospitality.