Organized crime is not in retreat. Quite the reverse; it is spreading far and wide, and contrary to popular belief, it is much more damaging than terrorist activity. The success of any initiative to combat the wide-ranging effects of organized crime depends on a thorough understanding of its geographical, historical and political aspects. Without careful, well informed strategic planning, there is a danger that the problem will only be dealt with piecemeal; individual actors may be apprehended, but the organization as a whole will shift and mutate, never losing its criminal character. All too often, arresting only one member or branch of a criminal organization not only fails to weaken this sector, but can unwittingly strengthen it by assisting the activities of criminal competitors. This book presents the proceedings of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop: The Role of Transnational Criminal Organisations in the Management of Illegal Immigration, Human Smuggling and Trafficking in Europe, hosted by the Bulgarian Academy of Science with the aim of improving diagnosis; pooling knowledge and building a more effective strategy on the information exchanged. In this way, currently uncoordinated individual efforts, aimed at combating organized crime and human trafficking at both a national and international level, can gain momentum and be taken forward. The diverse background and geographical perspective of the authors whose work appears here throws new light on this little-studied area, and makes this book of great interest to all those involved in the trans-national struggle to identify and prevent the proliferation of the organised criminal networks.
