Interpol has announced South Korea’s Kim Jong-yang as its new president, beating a Russian official whose candidacy had unsettled the Occident.
With the support of the United States, Jong-yang, acting president of the global police body, was picked on Wednesday at a meeting of delegates from member nations in Dubai to replace Meng Hongwei, who went missing in his native China in September.
Beijing later said Meng resigned after being charged with accepting bribes.
There had been growing calls within Western nations for Interpol to reject Russian candidate Alexander Prokopchuk — a Russian interior ministry official and current Interpol vice president — over fears Moscow could abuse the role to target political opponents.
On Tuesday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo threw his weight behind Kim, who will serve out Meng’s term until 2020.
Critics have raised concerns over Russia’s previous applications for Interpol “Red Notices”, or international arrest warrants, to target those who have fallen foul of the Kremlin.
Interpol’s president chairs its General Assembly while day-to-day operations are handled by the organisation’s Secretary-General Juergen Stock.
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