Brussels, 31/03/2021 (Agence Europe) – The national ambassadors of the Member States to the EU in the Committee of Permanent Representatives (Coreper) approved on Wednesday 31 March the use of the written procedure to validate the appointment of the Deputy Executive Director for the police cooperation agency Europol. Member States are expected to complete this written procedure on Thursday 1 April, according to one source. The EU Council chose French Lieutenant General Jean-Philippe Lecouffe, who will assist the Belgian executive director of Europol, Catherine De Bolle, who has been in office since 2018. There are three deputy executive directors, and one of these three mandates had expired on 31 December 2020. (SP)