EU arrest warrant put into practice
SHARON SPITERI
12.01.2004 @ 17:37 CET
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The seven EU states which missed the January 2004 deadline to adopt the European Arrest Warrant have said they will do so by March.
The European Arrest Warrant was supposed to enter into force in all the 15 EU states in January this year, but only eight countries - the UK, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Portugal, Spain and Sweden - have kept to the deadline.
The rest are now expected to do so by March this year - a delay that the Commission said will not create any major problems.
"We don't see any major problems. Its just a matter of a couple of months", the European Commission Justice and Home affairs spokesperson said.
The 10 accession countries are expected to adopt the European Arrest Warrant by May, when they enter the EU bloc.
The European Arrest Warrant replaces extradition procedures between EU member states and will enable prisoners to be handed over by the authorities of one EU state to another within a period of only 60 to 90 days
A few days after its entry into force, Spain issued the first EU arrest warrant against Swedish national Michael Kurt, who is wanted in Sweden for alleged drink-driving and drugs charges. Mr Kurt was detained in Alicante, southwestern Spain, last week.
Spanish magistrate Teresa Palacios issued the warrant against the man after a request from the Swedish authorities, the BBC reported.
