On Thursday 30 March, the European Parliament approved by a large majority (559 votes in favour, 7 against and 7 abstentions) the provisional interinstitutional agreement reached on 14 December 2022 (see EUROPE 13083/19) regarding the proposal for a regulation to establish a digital collaboration platform for Joint Investigation Teams (JIT).
This will allow for easy and secure exchanges and the temporary storage of information and operational evidence within the joint team, as well as between it and other bodies such as Eurojust, Europol and the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF).
The aim is to support the work of JITs, cross-border teams, which enable cooperation between the judicial and law enforcement authorities of a number of EU Member States. This will include the joint investigation team launched by the Lithuanian, Polish and Ukrainian authorities in March 2022 – with the support of Eurojust – to facilitate investigations into war crimes, crimes against humanity and other crimes in Ukraine.
After the final approval by the EU Council, the text can be published in the Official Journal of the EU and can enter into force. The platform is due to start operations no later than 2.5 years after the entry into force of the regulation. (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)