The Philippine National Police (PNP) and the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation are cooperating in the development of a fingerprint database in an effort to strengthen international cooperation against transnational terrorist organizations and organized crime groups, said PNP Chief Director General Arturo Lomibao on Wednesday.

Lomibao said this was among the highlights of his official visit to Washington last week at the invitation of the FBI Director in a gesture of reciprocal goodwill following the visit to Manila of FBI Deputy Director John Pistole in March.

He said he and Pistole also discussed the emerging security threats from organized crime and transnational terrorism in the Asia-Pacific region.

The PNP has provided the FBI with an additional 26,000 files into the fingerprint database, while the FBI has offered technical assistance to the PNP in the utilization of the system, he said.

The PNP and FBI officials also discussed prospects for better cooperation in terms of training, information sharing and intelligence exchange regarding transnational terrorist and criminal organizations, said Lomibao.

"The PNP welcomes every opportunity to explore other areas of cooperation with the international law enforcement community in terms of information exchange, cross-training, capacity-building, and technical assistance," he said.

The FBI has been accommodating PNP personnel in its regular training sessions at the FBI National Academy and in its training programs in the Asia-Pacific.

PNP Spokesman, Senior Superintendent Samuel D Pagdilao Jr., said international cooperation has resulted in significant accomplishments for the Philippine law enforcement community against domestic and transnational crime, and terrorism.

Source: Xinhua