DILI, 19 december 2025 (TATOLI) – The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Bendito dos Santos Freitas, held a series of bilateral meetings on 16 and 17 December 2025 on the sidelines of the 11th Session of the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention against Corruption (COSP11), currently underway from 15 to 19 December in Doha, Qatar.
The meetings focused on strengthening international cooperation in the fight against corruption, transnational crime and related illicit activities.
On 16 December, the Minister met with a delegation from the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) to discuss cooperation between Timor-Leste and the organization.
During the meeting, INTERPOL expressed its willingness to support Timor-Leste through human resource capacity-building initiatives aimed at strengthening national competencies to combat corruption, organized crime and transnational crime.
“The support includes the use of ASEAN regional mechanisms and emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence, in criminal investigations,” said in a statement.
On 17 December, Minister Freitas met with the Australian delegation to discuss the future establishment of a bilateral cooperation partnership in combating corruption, transnational crime and organized crime.
The meeting enabled an exchange of views on identifying capacity-building needs, particularly for investigators, as well as on sharing experiences and best practices, including within the framework of cooperation with ASEAN member states.
Also on 17 December, the Minister met with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to discuss mechanisms to combat illegal gambling, money laundering and drug-related crimes, as well as the use of digital technologies and artificial intelligence at both regional and national levels.
“The discussions explored opportunities for cooperation in technical training and institutional capacity strengthening, including the use of forensic equipment to investigate and detect cross-border crimes. During the meeting, UNODC invited the Government of Timor-Leste to participate in an international conference on combating illegal gambling and smuggling, scheduled to take place in Vienna in 2026,” read the statement.
The meetings were attended by the Commissioner of the Anti-Corruption Commission, Rui Pereira dos Santos; the National Director of the Scientific Criminal Investigation Police, Vicente Fernandes Brito; Member of Parliament Virginia Ana Belo; and the Deputy Prosecutor General of the Republic, Angelina Saldanha.
TATOLI
