EU and Ecuador signed an international agreement to fight serious crime

Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration, Magnus Brunner and the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility of Ecuador, Gabriela Sommerfeld signed an agreement on the exchange of data between Europol and Ecuador to help fight organised crime and terrorism.

This agreement builds on an existing working arrangement, under which Europol and Ecuadorian authorities cooperated to seize 80 tons of drugs and 36 arrests in March 2025. The new agreement enables Europol and Ecuador to improve the exchange of information, including personal data. The agreement guarantees a high level of protection of fundamental rights, including through strong data protection safeguards.

It is now for the European Parliament to give its consent for the conclusion of the agreement.

Stepping up information exchange with partner countries is a key element of the EU's efforts to boost international cooperation on security. This was also highlighted in the new European Internal Security Strategy - ProtectEU presented in April 2025. The EU already has a similar agreement in place with New Zealand. Another such agreement was signed with Brazil in March 2025.

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