What is the difference between Europol and Interpol?

Interpol and Europol are different intelligence agencies that have different functions. While Interpol is mainly concerned with cooperation among police organizations in different countries, Europol is mainly concerned with Intelligence organizations of the European Union member countries.

When comparing both organizations, Interpol is more widely known in the world than Europol especially in terms of scope.

Interpol is the International Criminal Police Organization set up to ensure cooperation between different international police organizations. It was named the International Criminal Police Commission in its inception in 1923, and the present name was adopted in 1956.

Europol is the European Police Office which is the official intelligence agency of the European Union. The organization was established in 1999. But the organization had started on a limited scale from 1994 soon after the Maastricht Treaty of 1992. In the initial stages, Europol mainly focused on drug-related crimes.

Interpol has the power and right to conduct investigations and can also arrest the suspects involved in the crimes if need be. Interpol primarily deals with all crimes like money laundering, drug peddling, terrorism, genocide, and numerous others.

Europol, on the contrary, has no right or power to conduct investigations or question the suspects involved in various crimes. Moreover, Europol also does not have the power to issue arrests of the suspects connected with any crime in the countries that are members of the European Union. Europol can lend a hand to the intelligence agencies in the other European Union member countries only.

Unlike Interpol, Europol has no executive powers. Europol just has supportive powers only.