Croatia: ICITAP-Driven Regional Roundtable Advances Western Balkans Cooperation Against Organized Crime and Terrorism

From June 1–2, the U.S. Embassy in Zagreb and ICITAP Croatia, in partnership with the Croatian Ministry of the Interior’s Criminal Police Directorate and Police Academy, convened the fourth Organized Crime Roundtable, bringing together 14 senior criminal police and organized crime directors from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia, alongside representatives from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). As the only recurring regional forum that enables direct engagement among senior law enforcement leaders across the Western Balkans, the roundtable served as a critical platform for advancing cooperation against transnational organized crime, terrorism, cybercrime, and illicit migration. Discussions focused on identifying more effective applications of existing criminal legislation, exploring potential legal reforms, strengthening cybercrime and hybrid-threat response capabilities through enhanced training for police, prosecutors, and judges, and improving operational coordination against narcotics trafficking, terrorism, and irregular migration through more robust information sharing and cooperation with correctional institutions. A significant outcome of the event was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Croatia’s Criminal Police Directorate and the Bosnia and Herzegovina State Investigation and Protection Agency to enhance cooperation in preventing and countering terrorism. The agreement formalizes and expands existing collaboration through intelligence sharing, joint operational activities, exchange of expertise and best practices, and participation in collaborative projects, further strengthening regional counterterrorism architecture. The roundtable highlights ICITAP’s unique and sustained role in fostering trusted relationships among regional law enforcement leaders, creating mechanisms for operational coordination that extend beyond national borders. By strengthening regional cooperation, improving information sharing, and promoting unified approaches to combating organized crime and terrorism, ICITAP is helping partner nations address threats before they reach the United States or impact U.S. citizens, businesses, and interests abroad. These efforts advance U.S. national security objectives by disrupting transnational criminal networks, enhancing regional stability, and building enduring law enforcement partnerships throughout the Western Balkans. In Croatia, ICITAP programming is funded by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).