Skopje, 17 February 2022 (MIA) – Coordination and cooperation between the public prosecutor’s office and other national and international institutions in the fight against corruption and organized crime is necessary, North Macedonia’s Chief Public Prosecutor Ljubomir Joveski said Thursday. It has been proved that it is necessary after yesterday’s coordinated operation of the prosecution offices of North Macedonia, Belgium and the Netherlands that cracked down a drug selling criminal group, he told today’s closing event marking the end of the EU-funded twinning project on building institutional capacity of the investigative centers. “The project in the midst of reforms in the country in general and in the judicial system played a role in the establishment of efficient investigative centers and raising awareness about their importance for quick, transparent and efficient investigations to secure hard evidence to be presented in courts,” said Joveski. Four investigative centers in Skopje, Kumanovo and Tetovo are operational at the moment as part of the public prosecutor’s office. Justice Minister Nikola Tupancheski called on all institutions tasked with curbing organized crime and corruption to use the interoperability system to share information and strengthen mutual cooperation. “The first step has been made, but a lot needs to be done,” he said. EU Ambassador David Geer said that the government, the ministries and the prosecution offices have to continue to provide continual support and resource for the investigative centers. Implemented in the past two years, the EU-funded twinning project was supported by the German Foundation for International Legal Cooperation (IRZ) in partnership with the Croatian Justice Ministry with the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Justice Ministry, Financial Police and the Customs Administration in North Macedonia.