National Police Agency and Croatia to Strengthen Public Security Cooperation for Protection of Overseas Nationals

Expanding From Tourism Patrol Duties to Combatting Transnational Crime

The police are strengthening security cooperation to ensure the safety of Korean nationals traveling to Croatia during the summer vacation season.

On July 21, the Korean National Police Agency announced that it had signed a police cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Croatian Ministry of the Interior at the Embassy of Croatia in Korea. In addition, two police officers have been dispatched to major tourist destinations in Croatia until August 13.

Officials from the Croatian Ministry of the Interior and the Korean National Police Agency are posing for a commemorative photo after signing a police cooperation memorandum of understanding (MOU) at the Embassy of Croatia in Korea on the 21st. Korean National Police Agency

Since 2006, the Croatian police have operated joint patrol teams with foreign police officers at major tourist sites every summer as part of the Safe Destination Project. The Korean National Police Agency has sent a total of 16 officers to Croatia for overseas citizen protection work, beginning in 2019 and on four separate occasions including 2022 and 2023.

The dispatched Korean police officers will work in key areas such as Zagreb, Split, and Dubrovnik. Their duties include patrolling tourist attractions with local police, responding to reports and providing immediate response in the event of incidents or accidents involving Korean nationals, as well as maintaining emergency contact systems. Plans also include conducting rapid response training (FTX) and holding safety meetings for Korean residents.

This MOU is intended to establish a more comprehensive police cooperation system, including transnational crime response, based on the trust developed through bilateral tourism cooperation. The police agencies of Korea and Croatia plan to expand cooperation across all aspects of transnational crime, such as conducting joint operations, cooperating in investigations involving fugitives, and sharing criminal intelligence and case studies. They will also collaborate on capacity building through education, training, and the exchange of specialists.

An official from the Korean National Police Agency said, "Collaboration in the tourism sector with Croatia has evolved into a field-based cooperation model for the protection of our citizens. This memorandum of understanding will serve as an opportunity to strengthen practical public security cooperation. We will continue to work to ensure the safety of our citizens and enhance international cooperation capabilities."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.