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100			_aLONG Magda _eAuthor
245			_aShadows of power beneath the threshold: _bWhere covert action, organized crime and irregular warfare converge/ _cMagda Long
260			_c2025
520			_aThis article examines the intricate interplay between covert action, organized crime and irregular warfare, emphasizing their collective impact on international security. Through an examination of two case studies – Serbia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia under Slobodan Milosevic and Russia’s invasions of Ukraine in 2014 and 2022 – the article reveals a recurring pattern of states deploying organized crime networks integrated within their governance structures to covertly influence populations and erode the legitimacy of target states for strategic advantage. It challenges the notion that these tactics represent a ‘new hybrid playbook’, arguing instead that they are an extension of strategies pioneered in the 1990s by regimes like Belgrade’s. The fusion of state power and organized crime obscures the distinctions between legitimate governance and criminality, creating a potent force in hybrid warfare broadly that is both deniable and highly effective. The case studies also underscore the importance of reassessing the role of organized crime in state-sponsored covert actions, offering new insights for policymakers and scholars grappling with contemporary security challenges. The article contributes to the broader field of security and intelligence by highlighting the enduring and evolving nature of these alliances in covert activities and their implications for regional and global stability.
598			_aIRREGULAR WARFARE, COVERT ACTION, SERBIA
650			_aSERBIA
650			_aORGANIZED CRIME
650			_aRUSSIA
650			_aUKRAINE
773			_gIntelligence and National Security, Volume 40, Number 1, 2025, Page: 87-113
856			_uhttps://doi.org/10.1080/02684527.2024.2417454 _zClick here for full text
942			_2ddc _cJOURNAL _n0
999			_c47949 _d47949