The Kleptocracy Curse: Rethinking Containment, a new report by journalist Ben Judah, offers a definitive account of kleptocracy as a pervasive global phenomenon and lays out the policies needed to defeat it. On October 20, Hudson Institute’s Kleptocracy Initiative hosted the report launch and an expert panel discussion on this insidious threat to democracy, the rule of law, and national security featuring Charles Davidson, Benjamin Haddad, Ben Judah, Karen Dawisha, Hannah Thoburn, and Thomas Firestone.
Many of the autocratic regimes threatening the U.S. and its allies are structured as kleptocracies. Criminal elites are misappropriating public funds and aid payments on a massive scale, undermining democracy in other countries by exporting corruption, and threatening global stability through territorial expansionism. Kleptocracies thrive on the vast shadow economy revealed by the Panama Papers and other recent scandals, and facilitated by unscrupulous lawyers, bankers, lobbyists, and other professional “enablers.” Despite this, our leaders have so far failed to recognize the true nature of these regimes and acknowledge Western complicity.
Join Hudson Institute for a discussion with former US Ambassador to Venezuela James Story to examine recent developments in Venezuela and assess the direction of Washington's strategy.
Please join Ambassador Greer for a fireside chat with Senior Fellow Peter Rough on the Trump administration’s first year back in office and what’s next for US trade policy.
Join Nina Shea in a discussion with Ethan Gutmann and Congressman Chris Smith, the author of the Stop Forced Organ Harvesting bill.
Please join Acting Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers Pierre Yared for a conversation with Senior Fellow Tom Duesterberg on the first year of the Trump administration’s economic agenda and the key factors shaping the US economy’s outlook.
