When Criminal Networks Become Geopolitical Actors

In this commentary, BIPSS Research Assistant Jannatul Toba examines how criminal networks can move beyond conventional law-and-order concerns to become actors capable of shaping geopolitical outcomes. She argues that criminal networks acquire geopolitical significance when their control over money, territory, trade routes, political institutions, or digital and financial networks begins to influence the behaviour and strategic interests of states. Focusing on the Bangladesh–Myanmar border and the evolving situation in Rakhine, Toba argues that the convergence of armed conflict, organized crime, trafficking, territorial control and the Rohingya crisis presents Bangladesh with an emerging strategic challenge. She therefore calls for a broader approach to border security that anticipates the convergence of these threats rather than addressing insurgency, organized crime, border management and refugee protection in isolation.