THE EUROPOL IN BULGARIA

Brussels, October 1 (BTA correspondent Atanas Matev) - A
ceremony will be held at Europol headquarters in The Hague on
October 3 to mark Bulgaria's and Romania's official entry into
this organization. The Bulgarian and Romanian flags will be
raised to the strains of the national anthems. Europol Director
Max-Peter Ratzel will make a speech to representatives of all EU
countries, politicians and diplomats. The two countries'
interior ministers will also address them.
The establishment of Europol was agreed on in the Maastricht
Treaty on European Union of February 7, 1992. Europol started
limited operations on January 3, 1994, in the form of the
Europol Drugs Unit. Europol proper commenced its full activities
in July 1999.
Working contacts between Bulgaria and Europol date from 2003
when a Bulgarian liaison officer was sent to The Hague. After
Bulgaria joined the EU on January 1, 2007, one more liaison
officer was sent to Europol headquarters, this time a
nice-looking young woman whose appearance belies her serious
commitments.
Strictly speaking, Bulgaria has been part of Europol since
August 1, 2007, when the EU Official Journal ran an announcement
of Sofia's membership. However, this went practically unnoticed
because only the interested parties in Bulgaria and the EU read
this publication.
Ratzel kindly accepted to be interviewed by BTA on the eve of
the ceremony for Bulgaria's and Romania's entry into Europol.
Ratzel said he was very pleased that Bulgaria and Romania were
already full Europol members. Now the two countries have the
same rights and obligations as the other EU members, he said.
The significance of the event for Bulgaria, Romania and Europol
is to show that the new countries are full-fledged members of
the organization.
Answering a question, Ratzel highly commended Bulgaria for its
cooperation with Europol so far.
Bulgaria and Romania were represented in Europol before they
officially joined it, so the sides have gained considerable
experience. Information exchange has grown steadily, especially
since January 1 when the second Bulgarian representative arrived
at Europol, Ratzel said.
He does not attribute this to an increase in crime, but says
harder work produces more results, which does not mean that
crime is on the increase, Ratzel said.
Asked to comment on the widespread notion that Bulgarian euro
forgers are better experts than those elsewhere in the EU,
Ratzel quoted police reports saying that Bulgaria had good money
forgers who used specific methods. The Bulgarian police have
seized ample evidence and are acquiring specific knowledge they
share with Europol.
This is yet another opportunity to highlight the latest success
story of European police cooperation. The crimes relating to
forgery of euro notes and coins in the EU have not increased,
but when the police in a member state makes it possible to
arrest money forgers and prevent forgery in another country,
this success should be judged on merit. The same applies to
forgers arrested in an EU country in connection with a case
unravelled in Bulgaria, said Ratzel.
Organized crime in the Balkans is a cause for concern to
Europol. The organization has a strategic picture of organized
crime in the Balkans, especially in the Western Balkans. One of
the traditional drug routes runs from Afghanistan through Turkey
and Bulgaria to Western Europe. Europol does not take into
consideration specific problems of the EU countries relating to
Bulgarian organized crime. Such problems are viewed alongside
organized crime in other Balkan countries, especially in the
Western Balkans, Ratzel said. BTA