Back CyberEast: EU-CoE CyberEast Project Launching Event

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM ,  19 - 20 September

In the framework of the EU regional programme ‘EU4Digital: Improving Cyber Resilience in the Eastern Partnership Countries’ adopted in November 2018 as part of its commitment to enhance the overall security across the region (including both a cybersecurity, and a cybercrime component), the new joint EU-CoE CyberEast project (which started on 20 June 2019 and which will be focusing on the latter) was officially launched in Brussels, Belgium on 19-20 September 2019.

The Launching Event was hosted by the European Commission’s DG NEAR and the Cybercrime Programme Office of the Council of Europe (C-PROC). EU officials, EU Member States, Council of Europe experts and project partners framed the current policy context in which the CyberEast project will be implemented. They also presented its main features and content. The country teams from each Eastern Partnership partner had the occasion to be familiarised with the new scope of the project, so as to further strengthen their commitment to the implementation of the CyberEast project as owners and beneficiaries of its activities, contributing significantly to the added value of its impact on the field.

Among the topics addressed during the Launching Event was the EU-EaP capacity building cooperation in the field of security and cyber threats, EU cybercrime policy developments, substantive law in view of applicable treaties, further development of international and public/private cooperation, crime proceeds online, law enforcement/CSIRT cooperation and interagency cooperation, continuous training for law enforcement, prosecution and judiciary, accountability, visibility and trust.

The Launching Event was attended by representatives of EaP project country teams (5 or 6 per country), European Union institutions representatives, including relevant EU agencies, EU Member States and Council of Europe experts, C-PROC management and staff.

Lawrence Meredith, Director for Neighbourhood East, DG NEAR, European Commission, Cathrin Bauer-Bulst, Deputy Head of Unit for the Fight against Cybercrime and Child Sexual Abuse, DG HOME, Nicholas Cendrowicz, Deputy Head of Unit for “Georgia, Moldova and Neighbourhood Cross-Border Cooperation”, Virgil Spiridon, Head of Operations, Cybercrime Programme Office, Council of Europe (C-PROC), and Giorgi Jokhadze, Project Manager of the new CyberEast project implemented by C-PROC delivered their welcome remarks to participants, followed by interventions from Europol, Council of Europe experts and representatives of relevant national institutions from the six Eastern Partnership countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine).

With a total budget of € 4.2M, jointly implemented with the Council of Europe Cybercrime Programme Office (C-PROC) and following the previous joint capacity building efforts of the EU and the Council of Europe in the framework of the Cybercrime@EaP projects
(2011-2018), the CyberEast project officially started on 20 June 2019 to address the cybercrime component, seeking to implement the necessary actions with the objective of fully complying with the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime.

The CyberEast project will do so by increasing the capacities on cyber-resilience, criminal justice and electronic evidence of the EaP countries, to better address cybercrime. The focus is on improving the legal and policy frameworks; reinforcing the capacities of judicial and law enforcement authorities and interagency cooperation; and introduce efficient international cooperation mechanisms to increase trust on criminal justice, cybercrime and electronic evidence, including between service providers and law enforcement.

For further details, please contact Giorgi Jokhadze, CyberEast Project Manager.

 

Presentations Day 1

Presentations Day 2