Czech justice minister Pavel Blažek, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the EU Council, will chair a meeting with his counterparts in Luxembourg on Thursday 13 October. The fight against impunity for war crimes committed in Ukraine will be at the forefront of the discussions, as Russia has carried out new bombing raids on Ukraine, including Kyiv (see EUROPE 13039/15). The ministers will also discuss the judicial training of judges, the protection of the environment through criminal law, the work of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) and the state of fundamental rights.
War crimes
The ministers will discuss the ongoing work to punish those responsible for war crimes in Ukraine. An exchange should take place on the extension of the list of European infringements to include the violation of European sanctions (see EUROPE 12988/3). The EU Council hopes to adopt its decision soon, but some countries, such as Germany, still need to have the principle validated by their national parliaments. The European Parliament approved the decision in July (see EUROPE 12988/3).
Ministers will not discuss the creation of a special international tribunal to investigate the crime of aggression in Ukraine, despite the growing call for this. According to one source, there is no position yet in the Council or the Commission on this issue. European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders has so far said he is against the creation of such a tribunal, but the Czech foreign minister resumed the debate in September (see EUROPE 12024/15).
Judicial training
Meeting participants will discuss judicial training for judges and its impact on access to justice, particularly in the context of the rule of law. They will focus on how to ensure a high level of participation of judges in training in this area.
The European Judicial Training Network will take part in the discussions with the ministers on this issue.
Environmental crimes
The directive on the protection of the environment through criminal law will once again be on the agenda of the justice ministers. They hope to reach a political agreement (‘general approach’) at their December meeting. In the meantime, they will report on the work done in recent weeks, after a partial approach was reached in June (see EUROPE 12968/11).
Progress has been made on several articles, including prison sentences for natural persons who have committed offences under the directive (see EUROPE 13030/3). Financial sanctions for legal persons continue to be the subject of disagreement in the working groups.
European Public Prosecutor’s Office
As is customary in October since the establishment of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), the ministers will review the work of the body in the presence of the Chief Prosecutor, Laura Kövesi. The European Commission and the Czech Presidency of the EU Council will inform the ministers of the latest developments.
The idea of extending the powers of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office could be raised, according to a European source.
Fundamental rights
Over lunch, the ministers will discuss, in an informal format, the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine on fundamental rights in the European Union in the presence of the Director of the EU Fundamental Rights Agency, Michael O'Flaherty. Among other things, they will discuss how to build human rights resilience in times of crisis.
Current affairs
Finally, the ministers will be briefed on the recent proposal for a directive on liability in artificial intelligence (AI) and will discuss the report on the application and functioning of the directive on the protection of personal data in the field of law enforcement. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal with Hélène Seynaeve)