For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
Contact: 202-282-8010
BUDAPEST, Hungary – Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano today joined U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder for the biannual U.S.-European Union (EU) Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial in Budapest, Hungary, to discuss international collaboration on counterterrorism and homeland security issues with Hungarian Deputy Prime Minister, Public Administration and Justice Minister Tibor Navracsics, Hungarian Interior Minister Sándor Pintér, EU Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights, and Citizenship Viviane Reding and EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Cecilia Malmström.
"The United States is fully committed to working with our European partners to combat threats to our mutual security and economic stability," said Secretary Napolitano. "Together, we will enhance information sharing, strengthen cybersecurity and ensure the security and resilience of our global supply chain systems against terrorism and transnational crime."
While in Budapest, Secretary Napolitano underscored the significant progress made in negotiations on the U.S.-EU Passenger Name Record (PNR) agreement—reiterating the important role that information collection and analysis plays in ensuring the safety of the traveling public through information sharing while protecting the privacy of passengers.
She also commended the World Customs Organization (WCO) for its continued collaboration on Program Global Shield––a multilateral effort led by DHS and the WCO and involving over 68 countries to prevent the illegal movement or diversion of precursor chemicals that can be used to make improvised explosive devices. She further underscored the United States and EU's shared commitment to continue strengthening international air cargo security and overall global supply chain security standards in partnership with WCO, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the International Maritime Organization (IMO), and the Universal Postal Union (UPU).
As part of the meeting, Secretary Napolitano joined Neelie Kroes, European Commission Vice President for the Digital Agenda and EU Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmström to reiterate their shared commitment to deepening cooperation to address the increasing threats to global internet and digital networks. They agreed to strengthen transatlantic cooperation in cybersecurity by further identifying the issues to be addressed by the US-EU Cyber Working Group—established at the Nov. 20 U.S.-EU Summit Declaration to develop collaborative approaches to a wide range of cybersecurity and cybercrime issues.
Yesterday in Budapest, Secretary Napolitano met with her Bulgarian and Dutch counterparts and joined U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to meet with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban—reiterating the Obama administration's continued commitment to partnering with Hungary and the EU to enhance international collaboration on counterterrorism and strengthen our mutual security.
Also yesterday, Secretary Napolitano participated in the European Cybercrime Forum, where she highlighted the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) close partnership with the Department of Justice and the EU on initiatives to combat cyber crime under the auspices of the U.S.-EU Cyber Working Group—including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Cyber Crimes Center, which brings together U.S. and international law enforcement to fight cyber crime including child pornography and exploitation, and the U.S. Secret Service's Electronic Crimes Task Forces, which create a framework for international law enforcement to share expertise and resources to combat electronic crimes such as identity theft, network intrusions and a range of financial crimes. Within the United States, the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Justice, Department of State, Department of Commerce and other federal entities collaborate to help strengthen cybersecurity and fight cyber crime.
For more information, visit www.dhs.gov.
###