International Crime Measures 

Counter instability, transnational crime, and violence that threaten U.S. interests by strengthening citizen-responsive governance, security, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. 

 Violence and political instability affect nearly half the world’s population and impose a staggering toll on human development, with an estimated cost of more than $13 trillion per year. 

 Transnational crime, with global revenues of approximately $2 trillion annually, fuels corruption, finances insurgencies, and distorts markets. Transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) traffic in persons and wildlife, and contribute to the domestic opioid crisis by bringing heroin and synthetic opioids across U.S. borders, harming American communities through the drug trade and attendant violence. Environmental threats such as water scarcity and biodiversity loss can further fuel tensions over much-needed resources. 

Crime and insecurity are often a consequence of weak democratic norms and institutions. TCOs and other illicit actors can exploit areas of weak governance to establish a safe haven to grow their enterprise. In areas of civic mobilization, some governments crack down rather than open up – ultimately undermining their own security as they lose public legitimacy and squander the public trust needed to combat crime. Globally, developing countries with ineffective government institutions, rampant corruption, and weak rule of law have a 30 to 45 percent higher risk of civil war and a heightened risk of criminal violence. 

As Secretary Tillerson stated in his remarks at Florida International University in June 2017, “Our international partners in this effort must work to reject intimidation, strengthen human rights, and increase the fight against criminal organizations within their own borders.”8 The Department and USAID will seize the opportunity to work with our international partners in this effort to counter instability, transnational crime, and violence through a range of programs, authorities, and diplomatic engagements. The United States has an array of varied interests across fragile and conflict-affected states, and the Department and USAID will selectively focus on those places posing the greatest threats and risks for U.S. interests. Strategies for Achieving the Objective Law enforcement capacity building programs are the bedrock on which we strengthen partnerships to counter TCOs. We seek to expand these programs and build the capacity of trustworthy foreign partners through rule of law and anticorruption assistance in order to facilitate law enforcement development and cooperation. In the Western Hemisphere, we seek to use these programs to target TCO leadership and their support networks, shut down illicit pathways to the United States, and enhance shared security. Globally, we will work with partners to cut financial lifelines for global terror and organized crime organizations, including those involved with human and wildlife trafficking. We will coordinate through regional and international bodies to develop and advance international standards on drug control and hold partners accountable to burden sharing. Development plays a critical role in counteracting the drivers of instability. The Department and USAID will address the underlying causes of crime by supporting critical institutional capacity building, civil society strengthening, and reform efforts needed to promote good governance, strengthen the rule of law, and introduce strategies to prevent, mitigate, and stabilize violence. In the Western Hemisphere, we will support economic and social opportunities for those at risk of becoming perpetrators or victims of violence as well as help improve citizen security. We will emphasize to foreign counterparts how citizen-responsive governance and protection of rights is critical to their own security and prosperity. This includes working to strengthen the institutional framework for the promotion of human rights, the human rights defenders’ protection systems, and communications and collaboration between governments and civil society. We will use foreign assistance, visa sanctions, and multilateral and bilateral engagement to promote government accountability and support partners in implementing reforms. Recognizing the influential role women can play in conflict prevention, peacebuilding, and stabilization, the Department and USAID are committed to full implementation of the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Act of 2017 (P.L. 115-68), which aims to institutionalize both protection of women in conflict situations and the engagement of women in decision making processes. The Department and USAID will make early investments in preventing conflict, atrocities, and violent extremism before they spread. During conflict, we will promote civilian protection and increase support to peace processes. We will enhance partner countries’ self-sufficient peace operations, training, and deployment capabilities, and build the capacities of international and regional organizations to conduct peacekeeping missions. Following armed conflict, civilian agencies will lead in consolidating gains and promoting stabilization efforts, including supporting local efforts to manage conflict peaceably, restoring public safety, holding perpetrators of atrocities accountable, and enabling disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of ex-combatants. The Department and USAID will provide short-term assistance to facilitate political transitions, along with assistance to address the governance challenges that are often the root cause of conflict. In tandem, host governments must increase burden sharing with international partners and develop the capability to coordinate their own security strategies. Cross-Agency Collaboration The Department and USAID engage bilaterally and through multilateral mechanisms with hundreds of external partners and stakeholders with an interest in reducing global violence and instability. We coordinate programs and strategies with relevant branches of the U.S. Government, including collaboration with the Department of Defense, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Homeland Security. We cultivate close relationships with UN organizations and non-governmental organizations active in this arena as well.