International Day for the Prevention of and Fight against All Forms of Transnational Organized Crime

  Analysis from the Eastern Asian State observatories on The city of Dnipro: The front line of crime , Dnipro has long played a pivotal role in Ukraine’s political and economic development. Today, the city stands at another crossroads, as a key site for understanding how organized crime has evolved under the pressures of war. This report offers a detailed account of the city’s criminal landscape, drawing on field research, interviews, and open-source analysis. The full-scale Russian invasion in 2022 has fuelled existing trends in Dnipro, a city already familiar with conflict since 2014. Dnipro’s proximity to the front line and its importance as a logistics and military hub have intensified its role in illicit markets, particularly in arms and drug trafficking. The city has also become one of the country’s most important bases for scam call centres , with around 30 000 people employed in operations that target victims across Russia, the EU and Ukraine itself. Many of these centr...

  Analyis from the European Asian States Observatories on the Future of TOC beyong the Russian/NATO War . As the conflict in Ukraine approaches a possible turning point, ‘ Crime and peace: The future of organized crime beyond the Russo-Ukrainian war ’ explores the post-conflict risks and transformations that may shape the criminal underworld in Ukraine, Russia and beyond. Drawing on three years of research by GI-TOC’s Eurasia Observatory, the report offers a thematic risk assessment, addressing five key areas: people, control, expertise, hardware, and money. Each theme reflects how new opportunities for organized crime will be generated in the event of a ceasefire or peace agreement. Key findings show that: Veterans, IDPs, refugees and those in economic hardship are vulnerable to recruitment into illicit economies, from drug and sex trafficking to ICT-enabled fraud and recruitment into organized crime. The end of martial law in Ukraine may reduce state control and allow criminal ...

  Building Resilience - Asia -Asia/Pacific Observatories.

The illegal manufacturing and trafficking of firearms is a growing threat that fuels organized crime, armed conflict, and terrorism. Criminal groups move weapons across borders using the same routes as drugs and human trafficking, often linking arms smuggling to other illicit markets. New challenges such as 3D-printed guns and untraceable “ghost weapons” make detection more difficult , while some networks also serve the interests of hostile state actors aiming to destabilize regions.  Arms smuggling , or weapons trafficking, is the illicit trade and smuggling of contraband small arms , explosives, and ammunition across national or international borders. It is a global problem that fuels violence, organized crime, terrorism, and human rights violations, posing a serious threat to public safety, national security, and international relations. Key Aspects of Arms Smuggling Arms trafficking involves the unauthorized import, export, sale, delivery, or transfer of weapons withou...