The Senate has ratified, as the decision-making legislative body, the draft law for the ratification of the Agreement between the Government of Romania and the Government of the United States of America on cooperation in the use of travel information, signed on 19 January 2024 in Bucharest.

There were 96 votes „for” and one „against.”

The agreement sets out the framework for cooperation on the assessment, analysis and exchange of travel intelligence, with the aim of ensuring the security and protection of the lives and safety of citizens.

The draft law for the ratification of the agreement creates the possibility for the Romanian authorities to implement the ATS-G (Automated Targeting System – Global) programme, which provides Romania with a tool to identify and track known or suspected cross-border criminals, to obtain information on organised crime networks and to detect potential threats to national security.

The transfer of information will be done through channels established by the parties and within the limits of applicable law, solely for the purpose of identifying security risks. The authorities in charge with the implementation of the Agreement are for the Romanian side: the Romanian Ministry of Interior through the General Inspectorate of Border Police/National Passenger Information Unit (IGPF/UNIP) and for the US side: the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) through the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

According to the explanatory memorandum of the draft ratification of the Cooperation Agreement, the implementation of the cooperation document will further strengthen the Strategic Partnership between Romania and the United States of America, allowing the relevant authorities to respond more effectively and quickly to various threats, with the aim of increasing the security of citizens of both countries.

AGERPRES