ALEXANDER KUPATADZEis a scholar with many years of experience in studying organized crime and corruption issues in post-Soviet Eurasia. He obtained his PhD in International Relations from the University of St Andrews, UK, and has held teaching and research positions at the Transnational Crime and Corruption Center (TraCCC), Georgian Institute of Public Affairs in Tbilisi, Georgia, OSCE academy of Central Asia in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, and Elliott School of International Affairs of George Washington University, USA.