Justice officials from across the European Union and 13 Latin American countries convened in Brussels on 20 February 2026 to deepen cooperation against transnational organised crime. The one-day summit, co-chaired by senior European Commission directors Ana Gallego, Irena Moozova and Myriam Ferran, focused on sharing evidence, recovering criminal assets and expanding Joint Investigation Teams. Belgium sees the initiative as complementary to its domestic efforts to curb cocaine trafficking through the Port of Antwerp, Europe’s largest gateway for Latin American narcotics. Federal Police representatives highlighted pilot projects allowing real-time exchange of shipping-manifest data with Colombian and Brazilian customs, while Eurojust outlined plans to station liaison prosecutors in Bogotá and Buenos Aires. Corporate-mobility managers were told that tighter information-sharing could trigger more secondary inspections of cargo and business travellers on certain air and maritime routes. Freight forwarders operating in Belgium were advised to review compliance procedures, especially for dual-use goods and cash declarations.
![Brussels hosts EU-Latin America summit to tighten cross-border crime controls]()
For organisations and travellers who now face extra layers of scrutiny, VisaHQ can simplify the administrative burden by providing up-to-date visa guidance, electronic document submission and status tracking through its Belgium portal at https://www.visahq.com/belgium/ The platform’s proactive alerts and expert support help ensure that legitimate passengers, crew members and business delegations have the correct paperwork ready—minimising delays when stricter controls are in place.
The summit also explored judicial-training exchanges and digital-evidence standards, initiatives expected to streamline mutual legal assistance requests – often a pain-point for multinationals facing cross-border fraud or IP-theft cases. Officials announced a follow-up meeting in Buenos Aires in October 2026 to assess progress and formalise a new EU-LAC Justice Partnership. While not a migration forum, participants acknowledged the link between organised-crime networks and illicit migration channels. Belgium pledged €2 million to expand intelligence cooperation aimed at dismantling smuggling rings that use student and tourism visas as cover.
For organisations and travellers who now face extra layers of scrutiny, VisaHQ can simplify the administrative burden by providing up-to-date visa guidance, electronic document submission and status tracking through its Belgium portal at https://www.visahq.com/belgium/ The platform’s proactive alerts and expert support help ensure that legitimate passengers, crew members and business delegations have the correct paperwork ready—minimising delays when stricter controls are in place.
The summit also explored judicial-training exchanges and digital-evidence standards, initiatives expected to streamline mutual legal assistance requests – often a pain-point for multinationals facing cross-border fraud or IP-theft cases. Officials announced a follow-up meeting in Buenos Aires in October 2026 to assess progress and formalise a new EU-LAC Justice Partnership. While not a migration forum, participants acknowledged the link between organised-crime networks and illicit migration channels. Belgium pledged €2 million to expand intelligence cooperation aimed at dismantling smuggling rings that use student and tourism visas as cover.
