Europol's support activities

Communication and intelligence gathering

Actively engaging with Ukrainian law enforcement through the Ukrainian Liaison Officer at Europol headquarters and supporting specific requests from the Ukrainian Liaison Bureau.
Gathering intelligence and carrying out operational monitoring of violent extremists travelling to Ukraine and streams of communication, financing or recruitment.
Responding to operational requests (including from Ukraine and Moldova) to take down specific Telegram channels used for pro-Russian disinformation and fake news (EC3 and EU Internet Referral Unit).
Europol supported the activation of the Law Enforcement Emergency Response Protocol (LE ERP) for major cross-border cyberattacks.
Europol ensures enhanced monitoring of cyber threats through constant contact with Member States, the Cybercrime Action Taskforce (J-CAT) and open source monitoring.

Combating trafficking of human beings

Set up a dedicated Virtual Command Post for THB (SPRING) to facilitate real-time operational exchange between Ukraine, Romania, Austria, Hungary, Germany, Slovak Republic, Moldova and Poland.
Established a temporary THB task management group to discuss operational matters at the earliest stage and strengthen cooperation with trusted NGOs in this field.

Supporting investigations into war crimes

Supporting investigations into war crimes through the Analysis Project Core International Crimes (AP CIC).
Established an Operational Task Force of OSINT experts to assist investigations conducted by Ukraine, other countries, as well as the ICC, into war crimes committed in Ukraine.

Tackling organised crime

Launched Operation OSCAR to cross-check EU sanctions lists against available operational data, identify links to organised crime and money laundering, and support the tracing and seizure of criminal assets.
Europol is working closely together with Ukraine to lower the risk of weapons trafficking during and after the war.

Supporting European Commission-led initiatives

The European Commission has established the ‘Freeze and Seize’ Task Force, which seeks to ensure the effective freezing & confiscation of assets of sanctioned individuals and entities. This task force is in cooperation with Eurojust and the 27 Member States.
Europol is also supporting the Common Anti-trafficking Plan, Solidarity Platform and Blueprint meetings.

Mobilising the European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats

Supporting the mobilisation of the EMPACT framework through an intelligence-led approach.
The EMPACT community met at Europol on 7 April and 9 June to tailor operational actions to evolving threats related to Ukraine.

Knowledge sharing

Providing advanced training on strategic analysis to Ukrainian law enforcement to support the work carried out by the situational centre of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Enhancing cooperation

A second Ukrainian Liaison Officer was dispatched to Europol HQ on 16 June 2023.

Europol has deployed operational teams to the frontline European countries neighbouring Ukraine within the framework of the Agency’s response to the ongoing conflict.

Publications

Europol Press Release - Europol participates in joint investigation team into alleged core international crimes in Ukraine
JHA Agencies' Network Joint Paper 2023 - JHA Agencies' Contribution to EU Solidarity with Ukraine
Infographic - Europol's Support to Ukraine: One Year On
JHA Agencies' Network Joint Paper 2022 - Contributing to the EU's Solidarity with Ukraine
Early Warning Notification - War in Ukraine: refugees arriving to the EU from Ukraine at risk of exploitation as part of THB

Meetings and visits

1 September 2023: Europol hosts delegation of Ukrainian law enforcement for training in strategic analysis at Europol Headquarters.
8 August 2023: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Kingdom of the Netherlands Oleksandr Karasevych visits Europol Headquarters in The Hague.
6 July 2023: Deputy Executive Director Operations Jean-Philippe Lecouffe welcomed a delegation from Ukraine’s National Anti-corruption Bureau & Special Anti-corruption Prosecution Office to Europol headquarters.
12 May 2023: Europol Executive Director Catherine De Bolle visits Kyiv, Ukraine together with EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson.
31 March 2023: Europol Executive Director Catherine De Bolle participated via video link as a panellist at the Bucha: Hallmarks of Genocide event, alongside Prosecutor General of Ukraine, President of Eurojust and Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.
27 September 2022: Europol's Deputy Executive Director Operations Jean-Philippe Lecouffe met with his Ukrainian counterparts in Kiev to discuss the further strengthening of operational cooperation between Ukraine and Europol.
22 June 2022: Deputy Executive Director Operations Jean-Philippe Lecouffe welcomed a delegation from the Ukrainian parliament to our HQ. The MPs were briefed on Europol’s support in the framework of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, particularly in relation to terrorism, war crimes, organised crime and asset freezing. The visit was facilitated and organised by EU Advisory Mission Ukraine, the EU’s civilian security sector reform mission in Ukraine.
24 May 2022: Europol hosted the first in-person operational meeting as part of Operation Oscar, which welcomed a special Ukrainian representation who travelled from the General Prosecutors Office in Kiev.
27 April 2022: Executive Director De Bolle presented Europol’s support activities to address the criminal & security threat following the Russian invasion of Ukraine at the Standing Committee on Operational Cooperation on Internal Security (COSI) in Versailles. In France she also met the directors of Police Nationale, Gendarmerie, and Douane France.
21 April 2022: Executive Director De Bolle met with Minister of Interior Vít Rakušan and President of the Czech Police Martin Vondrášek in Prague to discuss Europol’s support detecting threats stemming from the war in Ukraine.
20 April 2022: Executive Director Catherine De Bolle travelled to Slovakia to meet Minister of Interior Roman Mikulec & President of Police Štefan Hamran today in Bratislava. They discussed Europol’s support countering threats posed by the war in Ukraine.
19 April 2022: Executive Director Catherine De Bolle travelled to Hungary to meet Minister of Interior Sándor Pintér and Deputy High Commissioner for Criminal Investigation of the National Police Headquarters Sándor Töreki to discuss Europol’s ongoing cooperation with Hungarian authorities to respond to threats stemming from the war in Ukraine.
12-13 April 2022 - Europol hosted a meeting of the National EMPACT Coordinators to further discuss next steps in addressing threats linked to the war in Ukraine.
7 April 2022 - Europol, alongside French Presidency of the Council of the European Union and European Commission, hosted an EMPACT meeting to discuss coordinated operational actions for evolving threats linked to the war.
28 March 2022 – Executive Director Catherine De Bolle briefed ministers on Europol’s response to the war in Ukraine at the extraordinary Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial in Brussels.
25 March 2022 – Deputy Executive Director Operations Jean-Philippe Lecouffe met Frontex to discuss operational synergies in relation to the war in Ukraine.
22 March 2022 – Deputy Executive Director Operations Jean-Philippe Lecouffe travelled to Romania to meet national police and border agents to discuss the deployment of guest officers to the Romania-Ukraine border.
9-11 March 2022 – Executive Director Catherine De Bolle travelled to Poland to discuss how Europol can best support Polish authorities as they welcome an unprecedented number of refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine.
3 March 2022 – Executive Director Catherine De Bolle shared Europol’s assessment of increased threats stemming from the war in Ukraine at the EU Council Justice and Home Affairs meeting on Schengen.