IEKSLIETU MINISTRIJAS VALSTS POLICIJA STATE POLICE OF THE MINISTRY OF INTERIOR

Their core work

The State Police of Latvia is the national law enforcement body responsible for public safety, criminal investigation, and counter-terrorism operations across Latvia. Within EU research projects, they serve as an end-user practitioner — testing, validating, and providing operational requirements for security tools ranging from digital forensics platforms to radicalization monitoring systems. Their participation brings real-world policing perspectives to R&D consortia, ensuring that developed technologies meet the actual needs of frontline officers dealing with organized crime, cybercrime, terrorism, and human trafficking.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In their early H2020 participation (2017–2019), the State Police focused broadly on law enforcement innovation networking, counter-terrorism intelligence, and predictive policing tools — projects like ILEAnet and COPKIT emphasized knowledge management, OSINT, and early-warning systems. From 2019 onward, their focus shifted decisively toward digital forensics, cybercrime, and combating specific crime types like child sexual exploitation and human trafficking. This evolution mirrors the broader European policing shift from general counter-terrorism toward digitally-enabled criminal investigation and victim protection.

Moving toward specialized digital investigation capabilities and practitioner networks for cybercrime and online exploitation — expect continued engagement in projects requiring law enforcement end-user validation of forensic and AI-driven investigation tools.

How they like to work

The State Police consistently joins as a participant, never as coordinator — which is typical for law enforcement end-users who contribute operational expertise rather than managing research agendas. They operate in large consortia (133 unique partners across 8 projects) with no signs of repeat-partner loyalty, suggesting they are sought after as a Baltic/EU practitioner voice across diverse security research groups. Their modest funding shares (averaging ~€53K per project) confirm a validation and requirements-provider role rather than a technical development one.

Extensive pan-European network spanning 133 unique partners across 35 countries, reflecting the broad multi-national consortia typical of EU security research. No geographic concentration — their partnerships span Western, Eastern, and Southern Europe equally.

What sets them apart

As one of the few Baltic state national police forces active in H2020 security research, the State Police of Latvia offers consortium builders an end-user perspective from a smaller EU member state — valuable for demonstrating geographic diversity and operational relevance beyond Western European policing contexts. Their consistent participation across 8 projects since 2017 shows institutional commitment to research engagement, not just one-off involvement. For any consortium needing a law enforcement practitioner partner from the Baltic region, they are a proven and reliable choice.

Highlights from their portfolio

• COPKIT
  Their highest-funded project (€82,250) combining AI-driven early-warning, deep learning, and OSINT for counter-terrorism policing — the most technically ambitious project in their portfolio.
• INSPECTr
  Core digital forensics project building an evidence correlation and transfer platform — directly aligned with their recent strategic shift toward digital investigation capabilities.
• HEROES
  Addresses the sensitive intersection of child sexual exploitation and human trafficking, showing the organization's willingness to engage in victim-centered security research.