ABSTRACT
Concerns over the preservation of national sovereignty when negotiating international co-operation are not restricted to criminal justice or internal security. However, the fact has slowly dawned that the liberalisation of political and economic frontiers and the mobility of populations, whilst offering many social benefits, impact on crime at all levels. As a result, governments are increasingly prepared to modify and adapt their crime strategies accordingly. The international factor now operates on very local and quite routine crime not only in terms of the offender and the circumstances of the offence, but also in terms of victimology. However, national and international differentials in law enforcement ability, capacity and resourcing mean that best practice and performance far from being universal are not even practical in every region. Consequently, the help and assistance in law enforcement development offered to less affluent parts of the world (particularly involving the latest scientific and forensic techniques) is a crucial driver for improving both local and upstream disruption against international crime networks.
