Statement by President Lula during the signing of Brazil–INTERPOL Statement of Intent

You may realize that my voice is failing. I want to tell my fellow Urquiza [Valdecy Urquiza, Secretary General of INTERPOL] that I was going to return to Brazil last night. But I was provoked by Andrei [Andrei Rodrigues, Director General of Brazil’s Federal Police] and by my delegation, because it is not usual for a president of the Republic to visit INTERPOL. So I should make the effort to be here. So here I am, Valdecy.

I am here because it is an honor for Brazil, an honor for me, an honor for our Federal Police — a model that serves many countries around the world — and an honor to have a Brazilian Federal Police Commissioner leading what is possibly the world’s oldest police organization.

In this sense, we all deserve to be supported, but you must be extremely proud, because your nomination is the result of your career path, your work, and what you have been able to show the kind of police commissioner you are to those who were going to vote for you.

Congratulations, my friend. Make it a matter of faith. So that you can make INTERPOL stronger when you leave than it was when you found it.

May God be with you in this endeavor, which is extremely important to you and to Brazil.

It is an honor to visit the world’s oldest police organization, which gathers more member countries than the United Nations itself.

This is the first time a Brazilian president visits the INTERPOL headquarters.

It is a motive of great joy to be received by another Brazilian who has reached the organization’s highest post.

Valdecy Urquiza’s election as INTERPOL’s Secretary General is a recognition of Brazil’s prominent role in combating transnational crime.

INTERPOL works to locate and apprehend some of the world’s most dangerous criminals, combat terrorism, rescue victims of sex trafficking and exploitation, and protect the environment.

One of the perverse consequences of globalization is the ability of criminal groups to coordinate beyond national borders.

Criminal activity is evolving at an unprecedented pace, demanding urgent and coordinated multilateral action.

Increasingly driven by digital technology and global connectivity, organized crime has become a truly global issue.

The Statement of Intent we signed today will expand our cooperation through initiatives aimed at:

i) Strengthening international cooperation to combat organized crime

ii) Dismantling transnational criminal organizations and their support networks

iii) Supporting the technological and institutional modernization of public security agencies in Brazil and Latin America

iv) Promoting the protection of vulnerable groups and human rights in police operations

Several other measures we have recently adopted go in the same direction to make Brazil and the world safer.

We have expanded our network of Federal Police attachés to 34 posts across all five continents.

We are now present in every country in South America.

The establishment of the International Cooperation Center of the Amazon brings together public security authorities from the nine countries that share this biome.

At the Tri-border Area with Argentina and Paraguay, we have established a permanent cooperation platform to combat financial crimes, as well as drug, arms, and human trafficking.

Strengthening public security also means protecting nature.

My commitment to achieving zero illegal deforestation by 2030 involves taking firm action to suppress all forms of environmental crime.

Last year, Brazilian police seized more than 250 million dollars in assets from individuals accused of committing environmental crimes.

We also rendered unusable a total of 60 million dollars’ worth of equipment used in illegal mining operations, including dredges, tractors, bulldozers, and aircraft.

Through the Ouro Alvo [Target Gold] Program, the governments of Brazil and France are aligning cross-border efforts to combat illegal gold extraction and the illicit trade routes of gold and mercury.

These operations have been key to the removal of intruders from Indigenous lands and to reducing deforestation.

The Directorate for Combating Cybercrime, created under my administration, has prioritized high-tech crimes, electronic banking fraud, and especially the online sexual abuse of children and adolescents.

To effectively combat crime, it is essential to cut off its sources of financing, particularly money laundering.

No country alone will be able to overcome transnational crime.

Just like other pressing challenges that require collective action — such as climate change and the governance of digital space — police cooperation will remain a priority of Brazil’s foreign policy.

My dear Valdecy, one last message for you: the role of the police throughout the world is perhaps currently more complicated than it has been at any other moment in the history of the existence of police forces.

When it comes to organized crime, you are not dealing with a small gang or a few isolated groups. These are true multinational enterprises, with involvement in businesses, politics, the judiciary, football, and all areas of culture.

It is like an octopus with many tentacles, trying to take control of everything that is wrong in the world. That is why I am truly, truly pleased with your election as INTERPOL’s Secretary General.

When our dear friend Ahmed [Ahmed Naser Al-Raisi, President of INTERPOL’s Executive Committee] visited Brazil to speak with me, I was optimistic, but I found it hard to believe that a Brazilian citizen could become INTERPOL’s Secretary General.

Your election confirmed something I deeply believe: nothing is impossible when we work hard, when we believe, and when we truly want something to happen.

So my heartfelt congratulations to INTERPOL for choosing my fellow Brazilian, Valdecy, as Secretary General.