NEW YORK - INTERPOL has announced a significant step forward in its efforts to boost international police co-operation with a plan to connect the New York Police Department (NYPD) to its new global police communication network, known as I-24/7, as part of a pilot project in the United States.

The NYPD currently hosts the New York City INTERPOL Liaison Office which works with the U.S. INTERPOL National Central Bureau in Washington, D.C. As part of the pilot project, New York's police will be able to use the I-24/7 system to access INTERPOL's international criminal databases, which include information on international fugitives, suspected terrorists, stolen travel documents and other critical police data stored at the organization's General Secretariat in Lyon, France. If the NYPD receives any hits on its queries, it would then be required to contact the National Central Bureau for any international follow-up.

Eighty of INTERPOL's 181 member countries have already connected to the I-24/7 system, a state-of-the-art encrypted network using Internet technology, and the remaining member countries should be connected by June 2004. But the NYPD will be the first American city police force to have access to the system directly. Eventually, the U.S. hopes to connect all 50 states and eight major city police forces to this system.

'We are determined to get critical information to the police officer on the street as quickly as possible because speed can make the difference between public safety and disaster, especially where terrorism is concerned.' said INTERPOL Secretary General Ronald K. Noble during the International Terrorism Conference held in New York from 19-21 November 2003. 'We hope that New York will be first of many metropolitan police departments to recognize that accessing I-24/7 can help to keep both the police and citizens safe from dangerous international criminals.'

When I-24/7 is fully operational all of INTERPOL's member countries will be able to access the system through their National Central Bureaus, but countries are also being encouraged to extend the connection to other law enforcement authorities - city police, border control, customs officers and ports - where they believe it can be used effectively. This is already happening in Brazil, Germany and the UK.

INTERPOL has made it one of its highest priorities to ensure that member countries possess the most effective tools available to combat international crime and terrorism. I-24/7 provides immediate access to critical international police data around the globe. It enables information about terrorism and major crime threats to be shared more efficiently, and nominal data, fingerprints and identity documents to be verified in seconds.