A STEP TOWARDS A GLOBAL PLATFORM FOR COMBATING HIGH-TECH CRIME

THE EVENT RECORDED A RECORD NUMBER OF VISITORS, WITH NUMEROUS DIGNITARIES FROM THE HOST COUNTRY, INTERPOL, FBI, EUROPOL, AND GLOBAL TECH COMPANIES

n By: Mirza Bahić mirza.bahic@asmideast.com

As a city that regularly tops the list of safest places to live in the world, choosing Dubai to host the second World Police Summit seems almost logical. For those who want to emulate the exceptional security achievements of the host city, the second World Police Summit was the best address to review the latest technological trends and best practices for global police and security structures.

Record Numbers

This year’s Summit raised the bar compared to its predecessor and hosted 13,500 visitors from 110 countries. Over 3 days, attendees took part in 140 sessions, with 240 speakers discussing key topics for the future of policing, including crime prevention, operational innovations, strengthening defense capabilities, combating financial and cyber-crime, counter-narcotics, forensics, drone use, and the use of police dogs. The attendees had the opportunity to learn about the contemporary challenges faced by police forces on a global level, many of which are common to all law enforcement agencies and security structures regardless of state borders. In response to them, the latest technological achievements, strategies, and innovations in the field of public safety protection and law enforcement were presented during the Summit.

Transnational Crime a Huge Challenge

Yet, the WPS is not all about technology, and the Dubai City Police, as the event’s host, has been well aware of that. That

Investigations are slow, money moves fast

As part of the Summit, a conference on financial crime and money laundering sponsored by the UAE National Anti Money Laundering and Combatting Financing of Terrorism and Financing of Illegal Organizations Committee was held. One of its notable speakers was Jonathan Joyce, a special agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in this field. He focused on the importance of international cooperation in the fight against money laundering because, according to him, “investigations can take a long time, while money circulates very quickly”.

is why the Summit served as a platform within which the global police community can share experiences and best practices, as well as focus on creating common approaches to solving the challenges facing law enforcement agencies across the globe.

The Summit was opened by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai, who commented on the role of police forces in an increasingly networked world. He emphasized the importance of international cooperation in preserving global security and fighting crime in the most efficient manner.

Maktoum praised the police bodies of the United Arab Emirates for their activities in maintaining the achieved high levels of security, expressing his desire for the local law enforcement agencies to regularly cooperate with police structures from all over the world.

Record-Breaking Results of the Local Police

The second edition of the Summit was held at the right time as it is evident that a new security environment is now emerging in the world, characterized by cross-border criminal activities and the increasing use of new technologies by transnational criminal organizations. This devolution of the environment in which crime takes place has only emphasized the importance of international cooperation between law enforcement agencies and other security professionals. The first step on that path is creating a joint platform for cooperation, and the World Police Summit is currently the best address for that, claim the attendees.

Addressing the delegates at the opening ceremony, His Excellency Lieutenant General Abdullah Khalifa Al Marri, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police, joined His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed’s appeal for international cooperation in creating a safer world.

Investigations Are Slow, Money Moves Fast

In addition to the aforementioned exhibitors, the distinguished guests at the WPS included His Excellency Mohammed bin Taliah, Head of Government Services of the UAE Government, Ali Faisal Baalawi, Chief of the UAE Financial Intelligence Unit, Sujit Kumar Mohanty, Chief of Regional Office for the Arab States with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, Maj. Anood Al Saadi, President of the Dubai Police Women’s Council, Sébastien Moras, Chief of Staff of Europol, Elvira Zsinkai, President of Roadpol, Ernesto Bianchi, Director of Investigations at the European Anti-Fraud Office, Chady El-Khoury, Deputy Unit Chief for the Financial Integrity at International Monetary Fund and many others.

“As part of our commitment towards assisting friendly nations and international organizations, the UAE, represented by the Ministry of Interior and Dubai Police, is proud to have helped our international partners to arrest hundreds of fugitives and disarm tens of criminal organizations over the last two years,” added Al Marri. The Commander-in-Chief of the Dubai Police also presented the record-breaking results of the local police in international operations that took place between 2020 and 2022. They culminated in the arrest of 597 international fugitives from more than 101 countries.

Hideaki Ito, Deputy Director of the Drugs and Firearms Division of Japan’s National Police Agency (NPA), illustrated this by describing a highly successful police operation that was made possible by information sharing between Dubai Police and the NPA. “Last December, Dubai Police gave us information about methamphetamine being concealed in a passenger’s baggage on a flight to Japan. Based on this information, we were able to arrest the criminal who smuggled the drug to Japan and seized about 2.4 kg of methamphetamine,” said Ito.

Global Tensions Demand a Joint Response

The participants were also addressed by Jürgen Stock, Secretary General with lINTERPOL, who echoed the sentiment of the event’s hosts. He blamed growing tensions on the international stage for the creeping sense of general insecurity which forced countries to focus more on their internal problems.

“Tensions are rising internationally, crises are bringing national priorities inward and towards more traditional comfort zones. Yet that is precisely where global solutions are most needed. That is how we forge and enhance partnerships, that is how we ultimately bridge security gaps across regions, sectors, actors, and geopolitical blocs,” said Stock.

Security Technologies Can Also Support Business

At the exhibition area of the Summit, over 170 companies had the opportunity to connect, network, and socialize with their new and existing users, and show them the cutting-edge products and technologies that can support their business. That’s why this year’s Summit hosted many leading technology companies that are transforming the global security environment in innovative ways.

One of them is Schneider Electric whose representative Manuel Rodrigues addressed the participants as the Vice President for the company’s Secure Power division in the Gulf region. He described the WPS as a key platform for the exchange of ideas and cooperation with all stakeholders in achieving their goals.

“The World Police Summit is critical in driving this as it provides a unique platform to share ideas and collaborate with key stakeholders toward achieving these goals,” he added, summing up the general perception of the WPS as a resounding success for both the hosts and the attendees who are already marking their dates for its next iteration. n