Starting in the 1990s with the end of the Cold War and the advent of globalization, manycriminal organizations ramped up their operations and expanded them worldwide. Theseorganizations are believed to have been helped by weakening government institutions in somecountries, more open borders, and the resurgence of ethnic and regional conflicts across the formerSoviet Union and many other regions. Crime networks have exploited expanding trade and financialmarkets, while benefitting from rapidly advancing technology, broadened international travel, andimproved global communications. Mainly due to its clandestine nature, international crime is hardto measure. By the most conservative estimates, criminal proceeds (1) comprise between two and fivepercent of global gross domestic product (GDP). (2) Transnational organized crime tends to develop in nations where law enforcement institutionsare weak and citizens have limited economic alternatives. Farmers frequently turn to drugcultivation, boosting the international narcotics trade. Unemployed citizens seek work abroad andfall victim to people-trafficking rings. Across the globe, government corruption and illicit trade fueland sustain each other. Transnational crime is believed to most frequently originate in regions suchas sub-Saharan Africa, the former Soviet Union, Latin America, and the Caribbean, but its effectsare global. Many experts maintain that terrorists are increasingly funding themselves through crime. They have been linked with criminal groups in money laundering, counterfeiting, and other activities. Collaboration between the two groups could heighten threats to the United States and its interests. There is no single accepted definition of transnational organized crime. In 1994, researchersdefined "transnational crime" to include offences whose inception, prevention, and/or direct orindirect effects involve more than one country. (3) Experts believe transnational organized crime networks varyconsiderably in structure, strength, size, geographical range, and the scope and diversity of theiroperations. The United Nations sought a suitably broad definition in its Convention againstTransnational Organized Crime, to which the United States became a party in December 2005. According to the U.N., organized crime groups consist of "three or more persons, existing for aperiod of time and acting in concert with the aim of committing one or more serious crimes oroffenses ... in order to obtain, directly or indirectly, a financial or other material benefit." (4) Traditional vs. Modern Networks. Definitionsof transnational organized crime often differentiate between traditional crime organizations and moremodern criminal networks. Traditional groups have a hierarchical structure that operatescontinuously or for an extended period. Newer networks, in contrast, are seen as having a moredecentralized, often cell-like structure. Some experts also distinguish groups by their relation to thestate. Many conventional organizations have interests that are aligned with countries; they dependon the state for contracts and services. (5) They may have repeatedly laundered their assets through legitimatebusinesses. Modern networks, in contrast, are seen as less likely to profit from state contracts orlaunder large sums of money. They often thrive on the absence of effective governance. Organized crime can involve top officials. For example, Vladimiro Montesinos, head ofPeru's national intelligence and anti-narcotics efforts between 1990 and 2000, is now imprisoned,charged with running major international drug, weapons, and money laundering operations. (6) In addition, some states, suchas North Korea, are accused of participating in organized crime as a matter of state policy. (7) Organized Crime vs. Terrorism. Definitions oforganized crime and terrorism sometimes overlap. Both groups frequently operate in decentralizedcell structures, tend to target civilians, and use similar tactics such as kidnapping and drug dealing. Many experts distinguish the groups by motive: criminals are driven by financial gain and terroristsby political, sometimes religious goals. But clearly discerning groups' motives can be challenging. Terrorists are increasingly seen as supporting themselves through criminal activity. (8) Funding for the March 2003Madrid train attacks, for instance, came from drug dealing. (9) Some crime bosses also appear to dabble in terror. TheDubai-based Indian mobster Aftab Ansari, for example, is believed to have helped fund theSeptember 11 attacks with ransom money earned from kidnapping. (10) Further, definitions mergebecause a growing number of extremists may feel justified in committing the criminal activitiesthemselves, on the grounds that such acts square with their ultimate "terrorist" aims. (11) Narco-Terrorism. Some 17 of the 41 StateDepartment-designated foreign terrorist organizations engage in "narco-terrorism," according to theDrug Enforcement Agency (DEA). (12) Many experts believe the term "narcoterrorism" was first usedby former Peruvian President BelaÃºnde Terry in the early 1980s to describe terrorist-like tactics usedagainst Peruvian law enforcement by Shining Path Marxist rebels. While narco-terrorism has noformal definition, it is generally used to describe activities by groups that use drug trafficking to fundterrorism. For the DEA, it is "a subset of terrorism," in which groups or individuals participatedirectly or indirectly in the "cultivation, manufacture, transportation, or distribution of controlledsubstances and the money derived from these activities." (13) Some consider the term too broad. By various definitions, narco-terrorism could be appliedto a wide range of groups, ranging from guerrilla organizations such as the Revolutionary ArmedForces of Colombia (FARC), which earns hundreds of millions of dollars annually from cocaine, tosmall, fledgling terrorist cells. Some claim the term's use may occasionally reflect political motives. Mainly because it is clandestine, transnational crime is hard to measure. The U.S.government's International Crime Threat Assessment, (14) completed in 2000, gauges various global criminal activities andwas drafted by an interagency working group led by the National Security Council (NSC). Basedon this assessment, which is currently under review by the NSC, (15) and other more recentreports, the largest international crime threats, in terms of their potential impact, include (1)smuggling of nuclear materials and technology; (2) drug trafficking; (3) trafficking in persons; (4)intellectual property crimes; and (5) money laundering. Many experts fear organized criminals will help terrorists or nation statesacquire weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Among WMD threats, (16) many experts believe themost menacing is that terrorists could develop and use a nuclear bomb. (17) In regions such as theformer Soviet Union, the security of nuclear material has been criticized as lax. The StateDepartment, to allay concerns that former Soviet scientists could be bribed by criminal networks,runs nonweapons-related projects in Russia and Ukraine to keep them employed. The risk ofnuclear smuggling was highlighted in October 2003 when officials in international intelligence andlaw enforcement discovered that Pakistani nuclear scientist A.Q. Khan was selling nucleartechnology to North Korea, Libya, and other unknown parties. (18) In one scenario, a nuclearattack on a U.S. city could kill more than half a million people and cause more than $1 trillion indamage. (19) Every year illegal drugs kill about 17,000 Americans. (20) Illicit drugs are estimatedto impose about $160 billion in social and economic costs and $67 billion in direct costs to theUnited States annually. (21) The illicit drug trade is believed to be valued at between $500and $900 billion worldwide. Analysts identify cocaine and heroin trafficking as the most profitablecriminal activity for transnational groups. Trafficking in persons for sexual exploitation or forced labor is one oforganized crime's largest revenue sources, generating $9.5 billion annually, according to the FBI. An estimated 600,000 to 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders annually. Whencombined with domestic trafficking, the total is believed to be between two and four million. (22) About 14,500 to 17,500people are thought to be trafficked into the United States annually, (23) mainly from SoutheastAsia and the former Soviet Union. In principle, the term "human smuggling" is distinct from"trafficking in persons." In human smuggling, migrants pay to cross international borders. Expertsfear human smugglers may help terrorists enter the United States and other countries. (24) IP violations are thought to distort international trade and cause extensiverevenue losses to legitimate industries. According to Interpol, trade in counterfeit goods has growneight times faster than legitimate trade since the early 1990s. (25) U.S. businesses estimatethat counterfeiting costs them between $200 and $250 billion per year in lost sales. (26) In China, industryestimates place piracy levels in many sectors at about 90 percent. (27) Many criminal organizations hide the traces of their illegal activities by directlyand indirectly investing their profits in legitimate financial institutions. (28) In bulk cash smuggling,criminals place their profits in jurisdictions with lax financial regulations and law enforcement. Byhighly conservative estimates, money laundering is valued at two to five percent of world GDP. (29) The International Crime Control Strategy (ICCS), released in June 1998, has framed relatedpolicies of both the Clinton and Bush Administrations. (30) It was created by multiple agencies, led by the National SecurityCouncil, in response to Presidential Decision Directive 42 (PDD-42), issued in October 1995. It consists of eight broad goals, (31) and is intended to complement, not supplant, a variety of relateddocuments such as the National Drug Control and National Security Strategies. It aims to assist in"integrating all facets of the federal response to international crime."