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Three Balkan states sign "Balkanpol" security coordination pact

By Mohammad Al-Baqari (with photos) VIDIN, May 23 (KUNA) -- Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia on Saturday initialled an accord stipulating establishment of a joint communication center for swapping information among security authorities in the three countries.
The accord was signed after a three-party meeting that grouped the Interior Minister of Bulgaria, Mihail Mikov, his Serb counterpart, Ivitza Dachin, and the Interior Minister of Romania, Dan Nika, in the Bulgarian border city of Vidin, where headquarters of the station would be based.
Dachin said in a statement to reporters after the meeting that the agreement to establish a regional example of the interpol, that could be dubbed the "Balkanpol," would be helpful for updating and pooling computerized data for the borders personnel, such as incidents of illegal infiltration across the Danube river.
Chief inspectors and officers from the three countries will hold a meeting in a few weeks to discuss prospected executive steps within the framework of the cooperation agreement in the security domain.
The Romanian minister said the agreement constituted follow-up of coordination among the three regional countries that began with a meeting in Belgrade at start of the current year. Nika said he assured his Serb counterpart that his country could depend on Romania for help in the efforts to acquire the joint European visa for its citizens. (end) mbq.rk KUNA 231518 May 09NNNN