Jason Tower

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Articles

Myanmar Scam Hubs Revive Fast After China Eases Pressure on Junta

Sep 26, 2024 | usip.org | Jason Tower |Priscilla A. Clapp

Transnational crime groups in Southeast Asia, hit with intense scrutiny and law enforcement action earlier this year, are moving into new areas and adapting their operations as they revive and expand global scam operations. In Myanmar — a key center of this internet-based criminal activity — extreme political instability combined with the connivance of the country’s military and its militias continue to provide fertile ground for crime groups, albeit in new configurations.
As Myanmar’s Junta Loses Control in the North, China’s Influence Grows

Aug 1, 2024 | usip.org | Jason Tower

KEY TAKEAWAYS While China’s interventions to halt fighting in Myanmar have failed, belligerents are more dependent on Beijing. The junta regime has grossly misread Chinese intentions in seeking security support. The war’s trajectory risks an authoritarian outcome, even as the army wobbles toward collapse. KEY TAKEAWAYS While China’s interventions to halt fighting in Myanmar have failed, belligerents are more dependent on Beijing.
Examining the 2024 Annual Trafficking in Persons Report: Progress over Politics

Jul 8, 2024 | usip.org | Jason Tower

Chairman Smith, Ranking Member Wild, distinguished committee members, thank you for providing me with the opportunity to speak to: (1) the growing threat that forced labor scamming in Southeast Asia presents to the national security of the United States, (2) on what has been done until present to counter this growing global crisis, (3) on how this pertains to the recently launched Trafficking in Persons Report, and (4) on why the U.S. needs to advance a whole of government approach to...
Jason Tower on the Dangerous Proliferation of Scam Compounds in Southeast Asia

May 13, 2024 | usip.org | Jason Tower

Chinese crime syndicates have set up sophisticated online scamming operations throughout Southeast Asia that rake in an estimated $64 billion a year. Relying on forced labor, the scam compounds “look almost like penal colonies,” says USIP’s Jason Tower, adding: “This is happening on an industrial scale.”
Myanmar’s Collapsing Military Creates a Crisis on China’s Border

Apr 11, 2024 | usip.org | Jason Tower

Together, these operations have severed China’s links to the Indian Ocean, imperiled a geostrategic oil and gas pipeline project, and triggered action by China’s People’s Liberation Army, which has conducted live-fire exercises in southwestern Yunnan Province on the border with Myanmar. As China scales up its efforts to influence the trajectory of the conflict in Myanmar, concerns increase that this will dim the prospects for democracy and generate greater challenges for other countries.
Mapping China's Influence in Myanmar's Crisis

Mar 5, 2024 | gmfus.org | Jason Tower

On February 1st 2021, the Tatmadaw, or Myanmar military began a coup d’etat against the democratically-elected government, which was led by the National League for Democracy (or NLD) just before elected officials from the November 2020 elections could be sworn in. Since then, Myanmar has been largely controlled by a military junta, who continue to struggle against multiple ethnically-aligned armies dispersed throughout the country.
China’s Influence Increases amid Myanmar’s Instability

Dec 20, 2023 | usip.org | Jason Tower

Beijing has dramatically scaled up efforts to consolidate the success in dealing with transnational crime, while attempting to tilt the trajectory of the conflict in a direction favorable to its interests.
Myanmar’s Junta Is Losing Control of Its Border with China

Nov 8, 2023 | usip.org | Jason Tower

China’s efforts to curb the criminal enterprises and the trafficking of Chinese nationals to staff them included pressure on the military to crack down on its border guard forces and the fraud centers they enable. The generals ensuing lack of cooperation led the Chinese, souring on the junta, to take tougher steps — and the coordinated resistance elements to act in alignment with China.
Myanmar’s Crisis Looms Over the ASEAN Summit

Sep 7, 2023 | usip.org | Jason Tower

USIP’s Jason Tower and Brian Harding examine President Biden’s decision not to attend the ASEAN summit, how the Myanmar crisis has reduced ASEAN’s effectiveness, and what can be done to address the regional and global security threats emanating from Myanmar. Harding: President Biden’s decision to travel to both India for the G20 summit and to Vietnam for a bilateral visit while skipping the ASEAN summit demonstrates a shifting U.S. approach to Asia.
Ask the Experts: How to Stop Transnational Crime Networks in Southeast Asia

Aug 30, 2023 | usip.org | Jason Tower

Skip to main content In recent years, transnational criminal networks have built a web of influence throughout Southeast Asia to facilitate their illicit gambling, fraud and human trafficking operations. And while these networks emanate from several countries in the region — particularly Myanmar — their reach is global. In the United States alone, victims have already lost several billion dollars to scams.