UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday met here with Meng Hongwei, president of the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), and they vowed to further the cooperation between the two international organizations.
At UN Headquarters in New York, Ban, who congratulated Meng on his Nov. 10 election as the Interpol president at the outset of their meeting, said that he is convinced that Meng, the first Chinese citizen who was chosen for a four-year term at the world police body, will further the UN-Interpol cooperation with his extensive experience in the field of police affairs and international collaboration.
The secretary-general noted that this year marked the 20th anniversary of the Interpol's becoming an observer to the United Nations, and spoke highly of the partnership between the two world organizations.
For his part, Meng lauded the crucial contribution of the secretary-general to a strengthened UN role in maintaining international peace and security, and promoting common development in the world at large.
There is huge potential in the cooperation in the global security governance between the Interpol, the only inter-governmental organization facilitating international police cooperation, and the United Nations, the most universal and authoritative inter-governmental body, Meng said.
The Interpol was established as the International Criminal Police Commission (ICPC) in 1923. The international agency chose Interpol as its telegraphic address in 1946, and made it its common name in 1956.