OSCE organizes regional workshop in Budva to support states in joining international ePassport verification system

The key steps in joining a technologically advanced ePassport verification system - the International Civil Aviation Organization’s Public Key Directory (ICAO PKD) – were explored at a regional workshop organized by the Border Security and Management Unit of the OSCE Transnational Threats Department in Budva, Montenegro on 15 and 16 November 2018.

The workshop brought together the heads of the Travel Document Issuing Authorities, chiefs of the IT Departments of the Travel Document Issuing Authorities and heads of the Passport Verification Departments from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro, to get acquainted with the ICAO PKD, which enables countries to effectively validate the chip stored in electronic passports.

Electronic passports are fraud resistant travel documents which make it harder for terrorists and criminals to forge travel documents. But having ePassports is not enough, the workshop’s experts said. The receiving authorities need to confirm that the ePassport belongs to its holder, and the ICAO PKD enables this.

"Joining the ICAO PKD is a proactive approach in fighting recurring organized crime, illegal migration and the movement of Foreign Terrorist Fighters,” said Jean Salomon, a Border Security and Identity Management Expert, and member of the ICAO Implementation and Capacity-Building Working Group. “To sustain and further develop an efficient management of safe borders and achieve stability in the long run requires an unwavering commitment: Embracing the PKD to bolster the secure world usage of ePassports.”

Christiane Dermarkar, representing the ICAO, said: “States participating in the ICAO PKD will facilitate international travel for their citizens - citizens from PKD Participant States will be more trusted at foreign borders and can enjoy easier border crossings.”

Representatives from each state presented the ePassport systems and the National Public Key Infrastructures they currently have in place, enabling the experts to assess which of the requirements they meet in order to join the ICAO PKD. 

Jeen de Swart, a senior information architect from the Dutch Ministry of Justice and Security, described how the PKD was implementation in the Netherlands. The workshop concluded with participants drafting national road maps on joining the PKD.

As a follow-up, the OSCE will arrange country visits to encourage decision-makers to join the ICAO PKD. This will be followed by technical support to provide on-site practical guidance and operational support in developing national compatibilities with the ICAO PKD.