Strengthening Regional Security Through Joint Operations, ASEANAPOL and INTERPOL

On 1 April 2025, in conjunction with INTERPOL’s HTSM Regional Debriefing on Operation Liberterra II and the CCISOM Workshop, Police Senior Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Huu Ngoc, Director for Plans and Programmes, represented the ASEANAPOL Secretariat and Executive Director David Martinez Vinluan at a coordination meeting hosted by INTERPOL NCB Hanoi.

The meeting brought together key stakeholders from INTERPOL’s Integrated Border Management Task Force (IBMTF), represented by Mr. Didier Clergot, Coordinator, and the Fugitive Investigation Support (FIS) team for Southeast Asia, led by Ms. Keratova Katarina, Assistant Director of INTERPOL FIS, along with representatives from various Police and Security Departments of the Ministry of Public Security of Vietnam.

Discussions centered on a joint operation scheduled for May 2025, aimed at strengthening border management and facilitating the identification and apprehension of fugitives at major international checkpoints across selected ASEAN Member Countries.

On the sidelines of the meeting, Sr. Lt. Col. Ngoc held bilateral discussions with INTERPOL counterparts to introduce ASEANAPOL’s new initiative targeting scam call centers linked to trafficking in persons and forced criminality across Southeast Asia.

The initiative focuses on:

• Conducting situational studies and assessments of national Anti-Scam Center operational models;

• Enhancing capacity-building initiatives for law enforcement agencies in the region; and

• Proposing a special ASEANAPOL–INTERPOL Notice for victims coerced into cyber-enabled crimes via scam call centers.

Sr. Lt. Col. Ngoc reiterated ASEANAPOL’s commitment to mobilizing resources during the operational phase and supporting joint actions with INTERPOL, particularly in designated pilot countries. He further emphasized the importance of leveraging INTERPOL’s tools and services to strengthen frontline responses and support fugitive investigations targeting the syndicates behind these criminal networks.

The meeting concluded with a shared commitment from ASEANAPOL and INTERPOL to enhance cooperation in addressing the growing threats of cyber fraud, trafficking in persons, and transnational organized crime across Southeast Asia.

“Together, we keep this region safe.”