Publication

This paper examines to what extent transnational organized crime might be a significant international security threat. The author analyzes the notion conceptually and empirically in order to present a clearer picture of the phenomenon and to assess the different ways in which its existence and activities present a potential menace to security. The paper concludes by suggesting that while the threat to the nation-state posed by criminal groups has been overstated in general terms, particularly with respect to short-term existential threats, the threat is real for poorly institutionalized, non-democratic states and ultimately for leading democracies as well.