What Is INTERPOL? Its Role and Scope of Authority

INTERPOL, the International Criminal Police Organization, is a cooperation organisation covering 195 member states worldwide and possessing the broadest law enforcement network at the international level. Headquartered in Lyon, France, INTERPOL’s main purpose is to facilitate information-sharing, operational coordination and mutual legal assistance in the fight against cross-border crime. In this framework, it provides a secure, rapid and technically standardised communication platform between the police, gendarmerie and customs authorities of member countries.

INTERPOL’s activities focus on combating offences of an international nature, such as terrorism, organised crime, drug and arms trafficking, human trafficking, cybercrime, child exploitation, environmental crimes and financial crimes. The organisation’s role is to ensure the flow of information between member countries and to coordinate cooperation; it does not have direct powers of enforcement, investigation or adjudication.

INTERPOL is not a court, a prosecutor’s office or an “international police force.” It does not have the power, on its own, to arrest, detain or use force. All operational activities are carried out within the sovereign territory of member countries and in accordance with their national laws. INTERPOL acts only as an intermediary body coordinating these activities.

The organisation’s main operating mechanism functions through National Central Bureaus (NCBs) established in each member state. In Türkiye, this unit is the INTERPOL-Europol Department of the General Directorate of Security. These bureaux communicate directly both with the INTERPOL General Secretariat and with the central bureaux of other member countries, coordinating information exchange on issues such as identifying and locating suspects, arrests, and the sharing of evidence.