The European Commission announced the signing of an agreement Thursday 30 June between Europol and New Zealand on the exchange of personal data between the latter and the EU. The announcement of the agreement comes as the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, received New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in Brussels (see EUROPE 12983/5).
The agreement on the exchange of personal data will strengthen law enforcement cooperation while maintaining a “high level of protection for fundamental rights”, the European Commission said in a statement.
This will enable Europol to “support the New Zealand authorities in concrete investigations” particularly in the fight against terrorism, organised crime, child abuse and cybercrime.
The EU and New Zealand had already agreed to strengthen law enforcement cooperation following the Christchurch shootings in March 2019. Close cooperation under the Christchurch Call (see EUROPE 12256/36) had been implemented to remove terrorist and violent extremist content online.
In addition, the EU and New Zealand reiterated their commitment to continuing their cooperation to combat online disinformation, to improve their crisis response capabilities and to tackle the drivers of radicalisation, including through improved transparency and management of algorithmic systems.
The European Parliament will now have to give its opinion and consent before the agreement can be concluded. (Original version in French by Thomas Mangin)