Consultations and workshops for successful financial investigations in North Macedonia

Consultations and workshops for successful financial investigations in North Macedonia

Kliknite tukaj za branje prispevka v slovenskem jeziku.

With Slovenian development assistance, capacity-building activities in financial investigations will continue in North Macedonia between 4 and 7 July 2023.

In the framework of the project “Support in Chapter 24 – Financial investigations”, consultations and workshops will be held for the institutions responsible for financial investigations in North Macedonia. During consultations and workshops, Slovene experts from the Specialised State Prosecutor’s Office, the Financial Administration and the Police will share their experience in dealing with real-life cases with their Macedonian colleagues.

Activities are funded by the Republic of Slovenia through its International Development Cooperation Programme and implemented in cooperation with the State Prosecution, Financial Administration, Ministry of the Interior, and the Police of the Republic of Slovenia.

 Further information:

Andreja Dolničar Jeraj

Programme Director

Centre for European Perspective

 

 

 

On progress in financial investigations in North Macedonia with the professional and international community in Skopje

On progress in financial investigations in North Macedonia with the professional and international community in Skopje

Kliknite tukaj za branje prispevka v slovenskem jeziku.

On 14-15 June 2023, in the framework of the “Support in Chapter 24 – Financial investigations”, project meetings were held in Skopje with representatives of the interested professional and international community in North Macedonia. Meetings were held at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the OSCE Mission in Skopje, and the Development Cooperation Section of the Embassy of Sweden, which currently holds the Presidency of the Council of the EU. During the meetings, the interlocutors were presented with information on activities carried out since 2019 with Slovenian development assistance in North Macedonia in the field of capacity building of the Macedonian institutions responsible for financial investigations, the challenges they are facing on the way to improving their results, the changes and progress they have already achieved in the framework of the project, as well as the ones that are still ahead of them on the path of European integration.

The meetings with the international community were followed by discussions with legal expert Prof. Dr Vlado Kambovski, President of the Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts, on the changes and adjustments to the legislation that are needed in North Macedonia to conduct financial investigations more effectively according to EU criteria and standards.

The meetings with the interested professional and international community were also an opportunity to discuss the possibilities of cooperation and networking in the implementation of Slovenian development assistance programs aimed at Macedonian institutions to prevent illicit financial flows as effectively as possible, to accelerate activities to confiscate the proceeds of crime and property of illegal origin, to combat the illicit arms trade and, more generally, to fight all forms of organized crime and corruption in North Macedonia as successfully as possible, as any progress the country makes in these areas will naturally be mirrored beyond its borders.

Photo: Meeting with the representatives of UNODC and the Swedish Embassy in Skopje.

Activities are funded by the Republic of Slovenia through its International Development Cooperation Programme and implemented in cooperation with the State Prosecution, Financial Administration, Ministry of the Interior, and the Police of the Republic of Slovenia.

 Further information:

Andreja Dolničar Jeraj

Programme Director

Centre for European Perspective

 

 

 

Forty representatives of Western Balkans governments, media and civil societies continued their work on countering disinformation on 6-8 June in Portorož

Forty representatives of Western Balkans governments, media and civil societies continued their work on countering disinformation on 6-8 June in Portorož

Kliknite tukaj za branje prispevka v slovenskem jeziku.

Global experts and practitioners increasingly warn that the phenomenon of disinformation should be viewed through a security lens. Malignant actors recognize and abuse the capacity of disinformation to undermine democratic processes and practices, erode the trust of the population in public institutions, and create tears in the social fabric of societies. While every country in the world faces the challenge of disinformation, Western Balkans is among those regions that have proven particularly vulnerable and often a target for foreign actors. 74% of Western Balkan citizens consider disinformation a security threat.

The Project Strengthening Societal Resilience and Countering Foreign Perpetrated Disinformation organized a capacity-building training in Portorož on 6-8 June for representatives of Western Balkan governments, media and civil society to foster joint work on countering this threat.

About forty participants took part in the two-and-a-half day long training dedicated to exploring the building blocks of comprehensive and holistic national defence mechanisms in countering disinformation. Renowned experts from across Europe and the US taught the participants how to verify information, detect and react to disinformation, and establish a whole-of-society response model. Progressing from theory to practice, participants used their new knowledge and tools during practical exercises and tailor-made simulations of disinformation event scenarios.

The objective of the Project is to assist the Western Balkan partners to create national response mechanisms to counter foreign-perpetrated disinformation. The training provided space for national and regional cross-sectoral working group discussions that will feed into national recommendations and other activities developed within the Project.

 

The project is funded by the National Endowment for Democracy and the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia through development cooperation funds.

On progress in financial investigations in North Macedonia with a professional and international community in Skopje

On progress in financial investigations in North Macedonia with a professional and international community in Skopje

Kliknite tukaj za branje prispevka v slovenskem jeziku.

On 14-15 June 2023, in the framework of the “Support in Chapter 24 – Financial investigations” project meetings with be held in Skopje with representatives of the interested professional and international community in North Macedonia.

The meetings will be aimed at presenting the activities implemented with Slovenian development assistance in North Macedonia in the field of financial investigations and the progress that the Macedonian institutions responsible for financial investigations within the framework of the project are pursuing and achieving on the path toward full EU membership.

 

 

 

Activities are funded by the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs and the Republic of Slovenia through its International Development Cooperation Programme and implemented in cooperation with the State Prosecution, Financial Administration, Ministry of the Interior, and the Police of the Republic of Slovenia.

 

 

Further information:

Andreja Dolničar Jeraj

Programme Director 

Centre for European Perspective

 

 

 

[16 June] Transatlantic Economic Leadership in the 21st Century

[16 June] Transatlantic Economic Leadership in the 21st Century

The Centre for European Perspective (CEP) and INFOBALT invite you to an interactive roundtable discussion titled:

 

 Transatlantic Economic Leadership in the 21st Century

 

Friday, 16 June, 09:00 CET/10:00 EET

ROCKIT VILNIUS, Gyneju str. 14

Follow live here.

 

Russian aggression in Ukraine, China’s strive not only for economic but for political influence, and authoritarian regimes questioning international order may create a challenge to transatlantic economic leadership. On the one hand, the Russian war in Ukraine has established grounds for the further consolidation of the EU and NATO alliance, including moving to joint procurements, speeding up green financial packages, and reviewing regulations on economic dependencies on semiconductors, raw materials, and hydrocarbons (oil and gas) supplies. At the same time, the global economy is going through a technological shift with digitalization and the growth of the intangible economy, e.g., stock of patents, brands, R&D, and software, defining much of the productivity growth in modern economies. As Europe and the US remain the central sources for this shift, they are perfectly positioned to harness it and create a new wave of globalization.

Concurrently, a Europe that is not afraid to receive ideas, technologies, and people from the rest of the world, a Europe without fear of technological change and capable of taking risks to fight climate change and support social diversity and economic prosperity, would be a dynamic Europe that we need, confident in its capabilities and with public policies that promote exchange and competition.

All in all, if Europe and America can find the (common) ground for establishing the policies and rules that will guide new commerce and concretize their strategic partnership, they can increase their capacity to generate new prosperity and stand up against new aggressions by malevolent regimes.

 

  • What will the digital economy of the future look like?
  • Is the EU’s strategic autonomy the right answer to achieve its “long-term” industrial and technological ambitions?
  • What competitiveness policies should the EU pursue to ensure higher economic growth?
  • What should our next steps (future policies) be to ensure that our strategic partnership can reap the benefits of the emerging ideas-based economy, trade in services, and ideas?

 

Joining us to discuss these questions are:

Jovita Neliupšienė, Deputy Foreign Minister of Lithuania

Jaka Repanšek, Chair of the Strategic Committee on Digital Regulation and Environment of the Slovenian Digital Coalition

Marta Poslad, Head of Public Policy, Central and Eastern Europe, Google

Fredrik Erixon, Director of ECIPE

Moderated by: Dr Rolandas Kačinskas, Foreign Policy Advisor to the Speaker of the Seimas 

 

Join us for a discussion live or on social media, as the discussion will be streamed on INFOBALT’s and CEP’s Facebook profiles.