The C3 project examines how external actors contribute to the fight against organized crime and the provision of security in Mexico, El Salvador and Guatemala. We understand these contributions as transnational security governance, which encompasses the control of violence and physical security, as well as the establishment of binding rules for the provision of security. Security governance must be seen as a transnational activity, since the security problems in question occur across borders, and actors from outside of the national context are involved in security provision. We assume that local actors may adapt, reinterpret, or reject foreign security initiatives. Our central research project investigates these processes of appropriation and rejection, based on three case studies:

1. the fight against drug-related crime in Mexico involving U.S. support through the Mérida Initiative;
2. initiatives of coalitions that try to advance anti-money laundering (AML) policies in El Salvador and Mexico; and
3. an international initiative to counteract impunity in Guatemala (CICIG).