At the meeting of the European Council held on 28 and 29 June 1991 in Luxembourg, the Heads of State or Government of the Twelve adopt the principle of the establishment of a central European Police Office (Europol).

At the meeting of the European Council held on 9 and 10 December 1991 in Maastricht, the Heads of State or Government of the Twelve decide to establish a ‘Drugs Unit’, to be responsible for combating international drug trafficking and organised crime in Europe, as a first step towards the creation of Europol.

Le 21 juin 1995, le journal espagnol El País commente la décision de la Grande-Bretagne de ne pas signer la Convention Europol instituant un Office central européen de police criminelle.

Illustration depicting the existence of close cooperation between French and Belgian police made possible through Europol.