Trump and the Chinese Interpol chief: how two elections can transform Beijing’s pursuit of fugitives abroad

Even in these times of epic uncertainty, you can bet your bottom dollar that the month we are now in will be remembered, above all else, as the month Donald John Trump – to paraphrase the late and great pugilist, Muhammad Ali – “shook up the world” by becoming president-elect of the United States. Even Trump, whose reputation for playing fast and loose with the facts precedes him, would have trouble altering that one.

But as the world ponders what a Trump presidency means for the future of the species, it is worth noting there wasn’t just one presidential election in November 2016. And that the other election could have a significant bearing on the ultimate success or failure of the centrepiece of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s ( 習近平 ) leadership – his protracted war against corruption and, in particular, Beijing’s octopus-like pursuit of fugitives from justice hiding out in foreign countries.

On November 10, at Interpol’s annual congress in Bali, Indonesia, the 190 member states of the international police organisation elected China’s vice-minister of public security, Meng Hongwei ( 孟宏偉 ), as their president. Meng is the first Chinese to hold the position and will next year welcome delegates from around the world to the first ever Interpol congress in Beijing. In his inaugural speech, Meng told delegates: “We currently face some of the most serious global public security challenges since world war two.”

Top Chinese police official chosen as Interpol head

No doubt his message referred to the very real cross-jurisdictional problems of terrorism, people-smuggling and drugs facing every nation, but his election as president of an international body of the standing and scope of Interpol is a key moment as China, bit by bit, manoeuvres itself on the complicated chessboard of international relations.