On 6-7 October 2025, the Budapest Process convened its Thematic Working Group on Law Enforcement Cooperation in Sofia, co-chaired by Bulgaria and Iraq. The meeting brought together 16 countries, more specifically 62 senior officials, practitioners and experts to examine the practical foundations and ingredients for successful law enforcement cooperation.
The opening panel featured representatives of Bulgaria’s Ministry of Interior, Iraq’s Prime Minister’s Advisor and National Security Advisor, Türkiye’s Ministry of Interior, the European Commission Directorate General of Home Affairs and the Budapest Process Secretariat hosted by ICMPD.
Over two days, discussions focused on embedding training within national institutions to ensure lasting sustainability and ownership of capacity development taking into account the need for digitalisation and modernisation. A second panel focus on the evolution of risk-analysis frameworks and vulnerability-assessment tools aimed at strengthening border operations and improving protection for vulnerable groups. A dedicated session on the future of the Community of Law Enforcement Practitioners (COLEP) outlined priorities for its next phase: targeted research, needs-based capacity-development, and development of data sharing.
This Thematic Working Group meeting aligns with the recently endorsed Call for Action 2025-2030 at the 7th Ministerial Conference in 2024, specifically priority goal 1 which focuses on preventing irregular migration through coordinated action.
The Thematic Working Group Meeting concluded with a commitment to turn dialogue into operational practice, with the development of a Roadmap on Law Enforcement Cooperation with a focus on strengthening regional cooperation, professional standards and collective preparedness along the Silk Routes.
