South Korean to head Interpol in blow to Russia

INTERPOL has rejected a Russian candidate as its president and instead elected Kim Jong-yang of South Korea, it was announced yesterday.

Mr Kim was chosen at a meeting of delegates from member nations in Dubai to replace Meng Hongwei, who went missing in his native China in September.

Britain, America and other European nations lobbied against Alexander Prokopchuk, an Interpol vice president, amid fears Moscow could abuse the role to target political opponents.

In an open letter this week, a bipartisan group of US senators said choosing the Russian official would be like “putting a fox in charge of a henhouse”.

“Russia routinely abuses Interpol for the purpose of settling scores and harassing political opponents, dissidents and journalists,” they wrote.

On Tuesday, Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, threw his weight behind Mr Kim, who will serve out Mr Meng’s term until 2020.

“We encourage all nations and organisations that are part of Interpol and that respect the rule of law to choose a leader with integrity. We believe Mr Kim will be just that,” he said.

Harriett Baldwin, Foreign Office minister, told Parliament on Tuesday that the Government would support Mr Kim’s bid.

Moscow’s interior ministry denounced a “foreign media campaign aimed at discrediting Russia’s candidate”.

Interpol’s president chairs its general assembly while day-to-day operations are handled by Juergen Stock, the organisation’s secretary general.

Ukraine, deeply at odds with Moscow over its annexation of Crimea and support for separatists, threatened to pull out of Interpol if Mr Prokopchuk won the election. Lithuania also said it would consider withdrawing from the network.

The latest election was triggered after Mr Meng was arrested in China during a purge against allegedly disloyal or corrupt officials.

Beijing later said Mr Meng resigned from Interpol after being charged with accepting bribes.