Authoritarian regimes like Russia and China often abuse Interpol in order to harass their critics or to justify their theft of business assets. | Laurent Cipriani/AP Photo

Opinion by Ben Keith and Ted R. Bromund

01/24/2023 04:30 AM EST

Ben Keith is a London barrister specializing in cross-border and international cases at 5 St. Andrew’s Hill.

Ted R. Bromund is a senior research fellow with The Heritage Foundation’s Thatcher Center for Freedom.

Interpol — the international law enforcement organization that helps countries nab fugitives — has effectively sided with Russia in its war on Ukraine.

Interpol’s member countries pledge to work together to prevent genuine criminals from escaping justice, and the system is based on the presumption that all its members are acting in good faith. But like other authoritarian members of Interpol, Russia abuses that presumption to pursue enemies of Putin’s regime. That has to stop, and Interpol has all the tools it needs to do so — including suspending Russia from the organization.

In response to Moscow’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, the U.S., U.K. and other allies last year sought to suspend Russia from Interpol. The group resisted, emphasizing its neutrality and claiming that it can do more good with Russia on board: “As long as the Interpol network can assist in the rescue of one child abuse victim … it is its duty to ensure that lines of communication remain open.”

That’s false. Interpol was formed to disseminate information to...

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