INL provides essential law enforcement training to police officers, judges, investigators, prosecutors, court reporters and customs and border officials. The training teaches authorities how to prevent, investigate and prosecute these crimes in their countries. With the help of these foreign officials, U.S. investigators have crippled major alien smuggling rings stretching from China to Guatemala, Mexico and other countries. INL also plays a role in the interdiction of aliens at sea, securing their swift repatriation to their home countries while preventing them from reaching the United States. These regional centers train thousands of senior law enforcement officers from around the world on the best practices and techniques for conducting criminal investigations.
Plans are in process to establish ILEAs in southern Africa and the Western Hemisphere.
And in peacekeeping situations, INL helps build and train local police forces capable of restoring law and order. This decade INL has deployed U.S. police officers and related specialists to serve in UN civilian police missions and bilateral programs in Haiti, Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo and East Timor, among other places. In addition to training, INL pursues negotiations with foreign governments to support the needs of U.S. law enforcement where it operates abroad. These include mechanisms for exchanging information on bank accounts, mutual assistance in criminal investigations, return of stolen vehicles and extradition of fugitives. INL's mission today tackles the vast range of crimes that originate in foreign countries and affect Americans here and abroad.