

economic interests and can cause significant damage to the world financial system through its subversion, exploitation, and distortion of legitimate markets and economic activity. Further, events in Somalia have shown how criminal control of territory and piracy ransoms generate significant sums of illicit revenue and promote the spread of government instability.
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TOC penetration of governments is exacerbating corruption and undermining governance, rule of law, judicial systems, free press, democratic institution-building, and transparency. As they expand, TOC networks may threaten stability and undermine free markets as they build alliances with political leaders, financial institutions, law enforcement, foreign intelligence, and security agencies. This is often accomplished through direct bribery (but also by having members run for office) setting up shadow economies infiltrating financial and security sectors through coercion or corruption and positioning themselves as alternate providers of governance, security, services, and livelihoods. TOC networks insinuate themselves into the political process in a variety of ways. In countries with weak governance, there are corrupt officials who turn a blind eye to TOC activity. The apparent growing nexus in some states among TOC groups and elements of government-including intelligence services-and high-level business figures represents a significant threat to economic growth and democratic institutions. TOC penetration of states is deepening, leading to co-option in a few cases and further weakening of governance in many others.

Developing countries with weak rule of law can be particularly susceptible to TOC penetration. Penetration of State Institutions, Corruption, and Threats to Governance. This Strategy organizes the United States to combat TOC networks that pose a strategic threat to Americans and to U.S. Not only are criminal networks expanding, but they also are diversifying their activities, resulting in the convergence of threats that were once distinct and today have explosive and destabilizing effects. Transnational organized crime (TOC) poses a significant and growing threat to national and international security, with dire implications for public safety, public health, democratic institutions, and economic stability across the globe. Transnational Organized Crime: A Growing Threat to National and International Security
