authorising the opening of negotiations for an agreement between the European Union and the Arab Republic of Egypt on the exchange of personal data between the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol) and the Egyptian competent authorities for fighting serious crime and terrorism

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

1.CONTEXT OF THE RECOMMENDATION

In the globalised world where serious crime and terrorism are increasingly transnational and polyvalent, law enforcement authorities should be fully equipped to cooperate with external partners to ensure the security of their citizens. Europol should therefore be able to exchange personal data with law enforcement authorities of third countries to the extent necessary for the accomplishment of its tasks.

Since the entry into application of Regulation 2016/794 on 1 May 2017 and pursuant to the Treaty, the Commission is responsible, on behalf of the Union, for negotiating international agreements with third countries for the exchange of personal data with Europol. In so far as necessary for the performance of its tasks, Europol may establish and maintain cooperative relations with external partners through working and administrative arrangements that cannot by themselves be a legal basis for the exchange of personal data.

Taking into account the political strategy as outlined in the European Agenda on Security, Council Conclusions, and the Global Strategy, the operational needs of law enforcement authorities across the EU, and the potential benefits of closer cooperation in this area, the Commission considers it necessary to start negotiations in the short-term with eight countries, as identified in the 11th progress report towards a genuine and effective Security Union.

The Commission has made its assessment of priority countries taking into account Europol's operational needs. The Europol Strategy 2016-2020 identifies the Mediterranean region as priority for enhanced partnerships. The Europol External Strategy 2017-2020 also stresses the need for closer cooperation between Europol and the Middle East/North Africa (MENA) due to the current terrorist threat and migration-related challenges.

Europol does not have any agreements in place with any of the countries in this region.

This Recommendation specifically concerns negotiations with Egypt, although cooperation with any MENA country needs to be seen in the context of the region as a whole. The current instability in the region, especially the protracted conflicts in Libya, presents a significant long-term security threat to the EU that needs to be addressed urgently. This concerns both the effective fight against terrorism and related organised crime, and migration-related challenges such as the facilitation of irregular migration and trafficking in human beings. Cooperation with local law enforcement is critical to addressing these challenges.

Political context

Egypt is a key partner for the EU, and could play a central role in promoting peace, prosperity and stability in the Southern Neighbourhood region. The general framework for cooperation between the EU and Egypt is provided by the Association Agreement in force since 2004.

Within this framework and in line with the revised European Neighbourhood Policy, the EU and Egypt agreed in 2017 on the priorities on which the cooperation between the partners will focus in the period 2017-2020. The Partnership Priorities include the reinforcement of the partnership in foreign policy and cooperation in the stabilisation process, notably in the fields of good governance, human rights, security and migration. Particular relevance is given to security and the fight against terrorism and violent extremism, as well as to prevention of radicalisation. Migration also falls under the priority areas for cooperation, with the aim of acting both on the root causes of illegal migration and on the strategies for migration management.

The EU and Egypt confirmed their common interest to strengthen cooperation in the field of security and the fight against terrorism, based on the follow-up of the first high-level counterterrorism consultation held in September 2016 which identified the prevention of radicalisation, law enforcement and judicial cooperation, border control, explosive detection, as well as aviation and airport security as potential areas of cooperation.

The EU and Egypt are also partners of the Global Counter Terrorism Forum (GCTF) and the Global Coalition against Daesh.

EU support has helped the Egyptian law enforcement and judicial authorities to implement the 2016 anti-smuggling legislation, with a detailed work plan agreed in March. The Egyptian authorities are also exploring future cooperation with the European Border and Coast Guard Agency.

Operational needs

Based on data available for the SOCTA 2017 and TE-SAT 2017, the above discussions, as well as, inter alia, Europol's in-house expert knowledge, cooperation with Egypt is needed in particular to counter the following serious and organised crime phenomena:

Terrorism: The threat posed notably by Daesh and other terrorist groups constitutes a serious challenge for the security of Egypt and the EU, which have both been targeted by terrorist attacks. European and Egyptian terrorists have also travelled to conflict zones to train and fight. The ability of terrorist groups to operate across borders, including through Libya is a specific concern. Closer law enforcement cooperation, including the exchange of personal data, will contribute to detect and prosecute terrorist suspects, prevent terrorism travel (including the risk of infiltration of migratory flows or relocation to other conflict areas), terrorist misuse of the Internet and terrorism financing (including the nexus with organised crime).