Participation of Polish Police Management in the European Police Chiefs Convention (EPCC 2025) A forum for cooperation in the face of new threats
On 23–24 September 2025, Deputy Chief Commander of the Police, General Dr Tomasz Michułka, participated in the European Police Chiefs Convention (EPCC) organised in The Hague under the auspices of Europol and the current Danish Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
The European Police Chiefs Convention serves primarily to discuss key issues related to security and international crime, as well as to strengthen the international cooperation by establishing mutual personal contacts. This year, the Convention brought together more than 400 police chiefs and high-ranking representatives of law enforcement agencies (police, border and customs services) from 53 countries and 18 international organisations, which demonstrates the scale and range of the international cooperation coordinated and conducted by Europol.
The Polish delegation was led by the Deputy Chief Commander of the Police, Gen. Dr Tomasz Michułka, accompanied by the Director of the International Police Cooperation Bureau of the National Police Headquarters, Col. Ireneusz Sieńko, and the Deputy Director of the International Police Cooperation Bureau, Col. Marta Łukasiewicz. The Polish delegation also included representatives of the Border Guard and the National Tax Administration. The delegates were supported on site by the Polish Liaison Office at Europol.
At this year's Convention, European Police Chiefs had the opportunity to hold joint plenary sessions in the form of panels, as well as bilateral and multilateral meetings.
The first panel discussed the phenomenon of ‘Crime-as-a-Service’, where organised criminal groups operate by providing paid specialised criminal services which are committed by perpetrators they recruited via the Internet. The scope of such ‘services’ ranges from DDoS cyber attacks to typical criminal acts, such as arson and assault. A key problem in this area is the use of minors to commit crimes in exchange for remuneration, the promise of improved social status or the creation of a sense of belonging to a group. The discussion focused, among other things, on the existence of serious legal barriers to effective prosecution, such as a variance in the age of criminal responsibility for minors in EU countries, limited access to data from closed internet forums, and cooperation with third countries (minors often originate from immigrant communities from these countries).
The next panel, ‘Follow the Money’, addressed the issues of new electronic financial services, including crypto-assets, the dynamic development of financial technologies and decentralised finance (DeFi), which pose serious challenges to the effective combatting of criminal activities such as money laundering, terrorism financing and the concealment of assets derived from prohibited activities. It was noted that the pace of innovation in the economic and cybercrime poses a challenge for law enforcement agencies to adapt, and the lack of personnel specialised in these areas and the recruitment of market experts to the private sector further weakens operational capabilities. The most important conclusions reached during the discussion included the need to support the further development of universal tools for analysing and tracking crypto transactions, treating money laundering as a separate offence without the need to prove the underlying offence, and enabling the direct exchange of operational data with financial institutions within the EU.
The additional panels organised as part of the Convention attracted considerable interest among participants. Poland was invited to participate in the panel on ‘Police actions in the region in response to Russia's attack on Ukraine’, during which Gen. Tomasz Michułka, PhD, acted as a speaker. The discussion, moderated by the Ambassador of Ukraine to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, was attended by delegates from Poland, Ukraine (online), the Czech Republic and Lithuania, gave both panellists and listeners a unique opportunity to examine the nature and causes of new, multifaceted threats related to the ongoing war in Ukraine, which European police forces are currently facing.
General Dr Tomasz Michułka gave a presentation entitled ‘Hybrid threats and the evolution of organised crime in the context of Russian aggression in Ukraine’. The presentation addressed issues related to acts of sabotage, disinformation, drone violations of airspace and other elements of hybrid warfare aimed at intimidating and polarising the society in Poland. The Commander also discussed changes in the structures and activities of the Russian-speaking organised crime groups and the Police measures taken in response. The presentation also included information on trends observed in our country in the areas of drug crime and illegal arms trafficking.
During EPCC 2025, the Deputy Chief Commander of the Police met with representatives of the Portuguese and Spanish Police, where the main topic was the development of cooperation in combatting the smuggling of drugs into the abovementioned countries primarily by sea from African and South American countries, and improving the exchange of information between the Polish Police and the police services of these countries.
The Polish delegation also held talks with representatives of the Czech Republic and Germany. During the trilateral meeting, the situation of war refugees from Ukraine in individual countries was discussed, as well as the potential consequences of ending the armed conflict and the related challenges for all law enforcement agencies.
Since 2021, awarding Europol prizes in innovation, i.e. the Europol Excellence Awards in Innovation, has been a regular feature of the EPCC. The aim of these awards is to recognise the most innovative initiatives and operations carried out by law enforcement agencies. They promote cooperation and partnership in the fight against crime and provide an excellent opportunity to exchange experiences and expertise. This year, as in the previous year, Europol Executive Director Catherine de Bolle invited the Chief Commander of the Polish Police to participate in the jury awarding these prestigious prizes. The Chief Commander of the Police was represented by his Deputy, Gen. Tomasz Michułka, PhD. The awards were granted in the following categories:
- ‘Innovation in ethics, diversity and inclusion’ - an innovative concept promoting diversity and integration, actively involving social groups and promoting equal opportunities.
The winner in this category was a project developed by the Portuguese Police. It uses the RAYUELA video game to promote safe and ethical online behaviour among young people. The project has reached over 400 schools, trained 1000 educators and already involved around 10,000 young people. By anonymously collecting data from the games, the project helps to develop personalised prevention strategies and educational policies.
- ‘Innovative Operation’ - investigations involving new or improved methods.
The winner in this category was Operation STREAM, carried out by the German Police, which ultimately led to the dismantling of one of the world's largest platforms for child sexual abuse material, KidFlix. Nearly 1,400 suspects in over 30 countries were identified as part of the operation.
- ‘Innovative Technical Solution’ - an innovative project providing novel software or hardware components that benefit law enforcement agencies.
The best solution turned out to be ‘AI4Interviews’, developed by the Norwegian Police in cooperation with Dutch partners. This project uses the integration of a head-mounted camera with intelligent processing tools (AI) to increase efficiency and situational awareness at the scene of an incident and to speed up documentation. Preliminary tests show a reduction in reporting time of over 80%, as well as a significant reduction in costs for the police. In addition, the data collected from the scene is much more accurate than when using traditional methods.
EPCC 2025 was preceded by an Informal Dinner for European Police Chiefs, hosted on September 22, upon invitation from the Chief of Police of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. These regular meetings, attended only by the Police Chiefs from EU Member States, the Schengen area and the United Kingdom, as well as the Secretary General of Interpol and the Executive Director of Europol, are aimed at exchanging experiences, discussing forms of international cooperation and coordinated actions at various levels. The commanders discussed issues related to the staffing situation in their formations. They addressed the ongoing changes in the labour market, taking into account the resulting generational and cultural differences, and discussed the issues of recruitment and retention of human resources.
It is worth mentioning that the previous meeting in a similar format took place on April 29, 2025 on the initiative of the Chief Commander of the Polish Police, General Marek Boroń, in Kraków/Wieliczka as part of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU. The outcome of the agreements reached at that time was the unanimous adoption and signing by the participants of the Joint Declaration of European Police Chiefs on the Future Development of Europol. In this document, the Police chiefs emphasised the importance of the further development of Europol as a European agency for information exchange, analysis and operational support.
The participation of the Polish delegation in the European Police Chiefs Convention (EPCC) and our country's contribution to the debates and exchange of views held within this forum on the strategy of European Union law enforcement agencies in the face of constantly evolving threats is a telling reflection of the role our country currently plays in the internal security of the continent.
