CRIMARIO moves forward in the inception phase
CRIMARIO II is currently in its Inception Phase, which is expected to last until 31 January 2021, if progress is not affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In the last three months, the team continued conduct desk-top research and remote work with other EU bodies and potential partners (countries and regional organisations). At the end of this phase, a 4-year action plan with a focus on sustainability will be proposed to the European Commission for approval.
Throughout the summer, the CRIMARIO team systematically engaged with EU institutions and EU Delegations in approximately 20 potential partner countries. This approach has continued hand-in-hand with constant connection with partners active in the targeted countries, such as UNODC, Interpol, USCG, etc. These (virtual) meetings allowed the team to appreciate the political dynamics in the regions, EU relations with the States concerned, gaps in security structures, and ways to promote regional cooperation in the maritime domain.
In parallel, several communication channels have been opened or expanded to raise the awareness around CRIMARIO II: participation to events and webinars, regular posting in social networks and website, publication of a newsletter. A CRIMARIO II factsheet has also been produced to present the objectives and the timeline of the project, as well as IORIS, the maritime coordination and information sharing platform, developed during the first phase of the project.
Other activities
Online meeting with the National Maritime Foundation (NMF), India
On 24th August 2020, the CRIMARIO team had a fruitful engagement with Vice-Admiral Pradeep Chauhan, Director General of the National Maritime Foundation (NMF) of India, with whom the team discussed security concerns affecting the Indian Ocean. During the exchange, potential areas of cooperation in the short to medium terms were also examined, with the decision that both CRIMARIO and NMF analyse potential areas where efforts could be combined, to promote maritime security cooperation in the Wider Indian Ocean.
The IORIS information exchange platform
During the first phase of CRIMARIO (2015-2019) CRIMARIO developped IORIS,designed to promote the operationalisation of information-sharing in the Indian Ocean region including the Djibouti Code of Conduct and the regional centres in Madagascar and the Seychelles. Currently, the system developed links the specified regional centres with States through encrypted means, and enables users to coordinate maritime operations.