International Journal on Criminology Volume 7, Number 1, Winter 2019/2020 | Page 68

International Journal on Criminology • Volume 7, Number 1 • Winter 2019/2020
Criminal Networks: The Forgotten
Actors of International Politics
Guillaume Soto-Mayor
Lead Research Engineer at CNAM Paris,
Lecturer at Sciences Po Paris and IEP Strasbourg
Abstract
The main purpose of this course is to examine whether an increasingly
wealthy and powerful crime aristocracy, the Mafias, has developed
a thorough strategy and acquired necessary capacities to
conquer power worldwide. This course will first attempt to critically
assess the lines commonly drawn between politics, conflict, and
crime. The study of the Mafias’ nature reveals this geopolitical actor
is structurally opposite and in competition with Nation-States.
Evaluating the Mafias’ flexible political strategies and their efficiency
shows that these actors are not a “State within a State” anymore
but can be considered as challenging Nation-States’ power
in the international arena on an equal footing. The course finally
touches upon the roots of Mafias’ thriving economic and financial
power, their main comparative advantages as geopolitical actors in
the international scene and how it sustains their thorough quest
for power.
Keywords: crime, Mafia, economy, power
Redes criminales: los actores olvidados
de la política internacional
Resumen
63
El objetivo principal de este curso es examinar si una aristocracia
criminal cada vez más rica y poderosa, las Mafias, ha desarrollado
una estrategia exhaustiva y ha adquirido las capacidades necesarias
para conquistar el poder en todo el mundo. Este curso primero intentará
evaluar críticamente las líneas comúnmente trazadas entre
política, conflicto y crimen. El estudio de la naturaleza de las madoi:
10.18278/ijc.7.1.6