Breaking: Europol. How criminal networks destabilise the EU – the new DNA of crime

Serious and organised crime is not just a threat to public safety; it impacts the very foundations of the EU and its society. It has a double destabilising effect on the EU. It undermines the EU’s economy, rule of law and society by generating illicit proceeds, spreading violence, and normalising corruption.

But the threat does not stop there: increasingly, criminal networks serve as proxies for hybrid threat actors, exploiting vulnerabilities to destabilise the EU and its Member States from within. Drugs, firearms trafficking, hybrid threats and organised criminal networks recruiting young people to carry out acts of violence, including contract killings.

These are a few examples which we will explore in this episode, to find out how serious and organised crime is destabilising the EU.

Speakers

• Andy Kraag, Head of Department, European Serious & Organised Crime Centre (ESOCC) at Europol
• Robert Fay, Head of EU Drugs Unit at Europol
• Tamara Schotte, Head of Analysis & Strategic Coordination Unit at Europol

Links

• Europol publication: The changing DNA of serious and organised crime, EU Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment 2025 (EU-SOCTA) (18 March 2025)
• Europol press release: Cocaine cartel collapses after final arrests in Spain (13 June 2024)
• Europol press release: Firearms trafficker supplying contract killers arrested in cross-border operation (26 November 2024)
• Europol press release: 21 arrested in hit against migrant smuggling across the EU-Russian border (25 April 2024)