Introduction: Diffusing the politics of human trafficking from Europe to Asia

The introduction examines the politicization of human trafficking in Eurasia and how these politics affect the policy adoption and implementation in this region. The chapter presents a definition for human trafficking and examine the scope and manifestations of the crime in source and destination countries of Eurasia. It discusses the adoption of the Palermo Protocol and explore the patterns of human trafficking dynamics across the region from Europe to Eurasia. Internal and external human trafficking constraints and different gendered and racialized approaches to trafficking policy that make ethnic minorities in the region more vulnerable to human trafficking are also discussed. Victim stereotypes perpetuated in the trafficking policies of Eurasia, have produced their own regional type of ideal victim ‘Natashas’ but increasingly men and children from this region are victims of labor exploitation suggesting that there are factors at play within these countries that encourage human trafficking.