Interpol picks South Korean as president as Russia loses out

Dubai: Interpol named South Korea´s Kim Jong-yang as its new president on Wednesday, in a blow to Russia which denounced "unprecedented pressure" against its own candidate to lead the global policing body.

There had been growing Western calls for Interpol to reject Alexander Prokopchuk -- a Russian interior ministry official and current Interpol vice president -- over fears Moscow could abuse the role to target political opponents.

US-backed Kim, Interpol´s acting president, was picked at a meeting of delegates from member nations in Dubai to replace Meng Hongwei, who went missing in his native China in September.

Beijing later said Meng resigned after being charged with accepting bribes.

The Kremlin expressed dismay that Prokopchuk, who had been seen as the frontrunner, was beaten.

"The election took place in the atmosphere of unprecedented pressure and interference in these elections," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

The meeting was Interpol´s largest to date with 180 member states present, its secretary general Jurgen Stock said.

Describing the agency as "neutral and independent", he said a breakdown of the secret ballot would not be made public.

Kim´s election was "democratic, transparent, free and clear," Stock said at a Dubai press conference.

- ´Unprecedented changes´ -

On Tuesday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo threw his weight behind Kim, who will serve out Meng´s term until 2020.

"We encourage all nations and organisations that are part of Interpol and that respect the rule of law to choose a leader with integrity. We believe Mr. Kim will be just that," Pompeo told reporters.

Critics have raised concerns over Russia´s previous applications for Interpol "Red Notices", or international arrest warrants, to target those who have fallen foul of the Kremlin.

British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt welcomed the vote´s "excellent" outcome.

"Very important news for rule of law internationally and encouraging that in a secret ballot this was so widely recognised," he wrote on Twitter.

Interpol´s president chairs its General Assembly while day-to-day operations are handled by Stock.

In remarks posted on Interpol´s official Twitter account, Kim said after his election: "Our world is now facing unprecedented changes which present huge challenges to public security and safety.

"To overcome them, we need a clear vision: we need to build a bridge to the future."