The Nexus Between Organised Crime and Extremism: How Ideologies and Conspiracy Theories Fuel the Symbiotic Relationship Between Crime and Extremism

The second meeting of the EU Knowledge Hub Thematic Panel 1 (Ideologies & Conspiracy Narratives), held in Aalborg, Denmark, brought together a multidisciplinary group of researchers, practitioners, and policymakers to investigate the evolving intersections between organised crime (OC) and violent extremism across Europe. This complex relationship, frequently referred to as the "crime-terror nexus," is a growing concern, not only because of its implications for national and EU-wide security, but also its impact on civil society, governance, and social cohesion.

Overlap in areas such as drug trafficking, robbery, petty crime, kidnapping or document falsification are common and ideology and criminality can be mutually reinforcing. Ideological motives have become interwoven with criminal activity, with criminal and terrorist groups drawing on overlapping networks to create a hybrid field where radicalisation and criminal activity occur simultaneously. This phenomenon is not confined to one ideological spectrum but rather can be seen across different forms of extremism, from the far-right and the far-left, Islamist, to ethnonationalist movements and beyond, as well as groups without a rigid ideology.

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