Future Police Officers Trained on International Crime, OSINT, and European Best Practices
March 25, 2025
Over the course of three intensive days, 159 cadets from the National Academy of Internal Affairs (NAIA) received hands-on training in international crime investigation, criminal justice, and tactical skills. The training, delivered by experts from the EU Advisory Mission (EUAM) Ukraine, aimed to prepare the next generation of police officers to operate in both national and international security environments.
EUAM experts jointly with investigators from the National Police of Ukraine (NPU) presented real international crime cases, grounding the theoretical instruction in frontline experience.
“For future law enforcement officers, understanding international crimes and how they are investigated is not only relevant but essential,” said Sven Erik Schuett, EUAM’s Senior Adviser on the Investigation of International Crimes. “This training helps build a bridge between Ukrainian policing and the best practices used across Europe in upholding justice, accountability, and the rule of law.”
For the cadets, this was more than a lecture series. It was a chance to explore complex topics including international criminal law, humanitarian law, evidence collection, crime scene management, criminal analysis, interviewing victims and witnesses, and witness protection. All sessions tied theory to practice, building on actual NPU casework.
In parallel, experienced OSINT investigators took part in advanced training delivered by the Centre for Information Resilience (CIR), an EUAM partner organization. Cadets also gained practical skills in tactical building entry, weapons handling, and combat first aid – essential knowledge in a country at war. A paramedic with frontline experience provided first aid instruction, emphasizing care under fire and life-saving interventions.
The NAIA’s facilities – modern, versatile, and in line with European standards – provided an ideal setting for the training. But as EUAM experts noted, it’s the content and the cadets themselves that matter most. Many participants showed strong curiosity, asking questions about how public trust in police is built in countries like Germany or Finland.
This training builds on earlier pilots at Donetsk State and Kharkiv National Universities of Internal Affairs. With the curriculum now refined, EUAM is working with the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MoIA), NPU, and NAIA to formalize it for all MoIA entities, including a “training of trainers” program.
For EUAM and its partners, this was more than a workshop – it was a chance to reinforce the role of police as protectors of the rule of law, and to strengthen Ukraine’s long-term security from the ground up.
