Illicit drugs
(Country profile category: Transnational Issues) |
Afghanistan:
world's largest illicit opium producer, surpassing Burma (potential
production in 1999 - 1,670 metric tons; cultivation in 1999 - 51,500
hectares, a 23% increase over 1998); a major source of hashish; increasing
number of heroin-processing laboratories being set up in the country;
major political factions in the country profit from drug trade
Albania:
increasingly active transshipment point for Southwest Asian opiates,
hashish, and cannabis transiting the Balkan route and - to a far lesser
extent - cocaine from South America destined for Western Europe; limited
opium and cannabis production; ethnic Albanian narcotrafficking organizations
active and rapidly expanding in Europe
Angola:
increasingly used as a transshipment point for cocaine and heroin destined
for Western Europe and other African states
Antigua and Barbuda:
considered a minor transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US
and Europe; more significant as a drug-money-laundering center
Argentina:
increasing use as a transshipment country for cocaine headed for Europe
and the US; increasing use as a money-laundering center; domestic consumption
of drugs has skyrocketed
Armenia:
illicit cultivator of cannabis mostly for domestic consumption; increasingly
used as a transshipment point for illicit drugs - mostly opium and hashish
- to Western Europe and the US via Iran, Central Asia, and Russia
Aruba:
drug-money-laundering center and transit point for narcotics bound for
the US and Europe
Australia:
Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit opiate products;
government maintains strict controls over areas of opium poppy cultivation
and output of poppy straw concentrate
Austria:
transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and South American cocaine
destined for Western Europe
Azerbaijan:
limited illicit cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for
CIS consumption; limited government eradication program; transshipment
point for opiates via Iran, Central Asia, and Russia to Western Europe
Bahamas, The:
transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for US and Europe;
banking industry vulnerable to money laundering
Bangladesh:
transit country for illegal drugs produced in neighboring countries
Barbados:
one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for the
US and Europe
Belarus:
limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for the domestic
market; transshipment point for illicit drugs to and via Russia, and
to the Baltics and Western Europe
Belgium:
source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors;
transshipment point for cocaine, heroin, hashish, and marijuana entering
Western Europe
Belize:
transshipment point for cocaine; small-scale illicit producer of cannabis
for the international drug trade; minor money-laundering center
Benin:
transshipment point for narcotics associated with Nigerian trafficking
organizations and most commonly destined for Western Europe and the
US
Bolivia:
world's third-largest cultivator of coca (after Peru and Colombia) with
an estimated 21,800 hectares under cultivation in 1999, a 45% decrease
in overall cultivation of coca from 1998 levels; intermediate coca products
and cocaine exported to or through Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, and
Chile to the US and other international drug markets; alternative crop
program aims to reduce illicit coca cultivation
Bosnia and Herzegovina:
minor transit point for marijuana and opiate trafficking routes to Western
Europe
Brazil:
limited illicit producer of cannabis, minor coca cultivation in the
Amazon region, mostly used for domestic consumption; government has
a large-scale eradication program to control cannabis; important transshipment
country for Bolivian, Colombian, and Peruvian cocaine headed for the
US and Europe; increasingly used by traffickers as a way station for
narcotics air transshipments between Peru and Colombia; upsurge in drug-related
violence and weapons smuggling
Bulgaria:
major European transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and, to
a lesser degree, South American cocaine for the European market; limited
producer of precursor chemicals
Burma:
world's second largest producer of illicit opium, after Afghanistan
(potential production in 1999 - 1,090 metric tons, down 38% due to drought;
cultivation in 1999 - 89,500 hectares, a 31% decline from 1998); surrender
of drug warlord KHUN SA's Mong Tai Army in January 1996 was hailed by
Rangoon as a major counternarcotics success, but lack of government
will and ability to take on major narcotrafficking groups and lack of
serious commitment against money laundering continues to hinder the
overall antidrug effort; becoming a major source of methamphetamines
for regional consumption
Cambodia:
transshipment site for Golden Triangle heroin; possible money laundering;
narcotics-related corruption reportedly involving some in the government,
military, and police; possible small-scale opium, heroin, and amphetamine
production; large producer of cannabis for the international market
Canada:
illicit producer of cannabis for the domestic drug market; use of hydroponics
technology permits growers to plant large quantities of high-quality
marijuana indoors; growing role as a transit point for heroin and cocaine
entering the US market
Cape Verde:
used as a transshipment point for illicit drugs moving from Latin America
and Africa destined for Western Europe
Cayman Islands:
vulnerable to drug money laundering and drug transshipment
Chile:
a growing transshipment country for cocaine destined for the US and
Europe; economic prosperity has made Chile more attractive to traffickers
seeking to launder drug profits; imported precursors passed on to Bolivia;
domestic cocaine consumption is rising
China:
major transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle;
growing domestic drug abuse problem
Colombia:
illicit producer of coca, opium poppies, and cannabis; world's leading
coca cultivator (cultivation of coca in 1998 - 101,500 hectares, a 28%
increase over 1997); cultivation of opium in 1998 remained steady at
6,600 hectares; potential production of opium in 1997 - 66 metric tons,
a 5% increase over 1996; the world's largest processor of coca derivatives
into cocaine; supplier of cocaine to the US and other international
drug markets, and an important supplier of heroin to the US market;
active aerial eradication program
Congo, Democratic
Republic of the:
illicit producer of cannabis, mostly for domestic consumption
Costa Rica:
transshipment country for cocaine and heroin from South America; illicit
production of cannabis on small, scattered plots; domestic cocaine consumption
has risen
Cote d'Ivoire:
illicit producer of cannabis, mostly for local consumption; minor transshipment
point for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin to Europe and occasionally
to the US, and for Latin American cocaine destined for Europe
Croatia:
transit point along the Balkan route for Southwest Asian heroin to Western
Europe; a minor transit point for maritime shipments of South American
cocaine bound for Western Europe
Cuba:
territorial waters and air space serve as transshipment zone for cocaine
bound for the US and Europe; established the death penalty for certain
drug-related crimes in 1999
Cyprus:
minor transit point for heroin and hashish via air routes and container
traffic to Europe, especially from Lebanon and Turkey; some cocaine
transits as well
Czech Republic:
major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and minor transit
point for Latin American cocaine to Western Europe; domestic consumption
- especially of locally produced synthetic drugs - on the rise
Dominica:
transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; minor
cannabis producer; banking industry is vulnerable to money laundering
Dominican Republic:
transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and
Europe
Ecuador:
significant transit country for cocaine and derivatives of coca originating
in Colombia and Peru; importer of precursor chemicals used in production
of illicit narcotics; important money-laundering hub; increased activity
on frontiers by trafficking groups and Colombian insurgents
Egypt:
a transit point for Southwest Asian and Southeast Asian heroin and opium
moving to Europe, Africa, and the US; popular transit stop for Nigerian
couriers
El Salvador:
transshipment point for cocaine; marijuana produced for local consumption;
domestic drug abuse on the rise
Estonia:
transshipment point for opiates and cannabis from Southwest Asia and
the Caucasus via Russia, cocaine from Latin America to Western Europe
and Scandinavia, and synthetic drugs from Western Europe to Scandinavia;
possible precursor manufacturing and/or trafficking
Ethiopia:
transit hub for heroin originating in Southwest and Southeast Asia and
destined for Europe and North America as well as cocaine destined for
markets in southern Africa; cultivates qat (chat) for local use and
regional export, principally to Djibouti and Somalia
France:
transshipment point for and consumer of South American cocaine and Southwest
Asian heroin
French Guiana:
small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment
point to Europe
Georgia:
limited cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for domestic
consumption; used as transshipment point for opiates via Central Asia
to Western Europe and Russia
Germany:
source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors;
transshipment point for and consumer of Southwest Asian heroin, Latin
American cocaine, and European-produced synthetic drugs
Ghana:
illicit producer of cannabis for the international drug trade; transit
hub for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin and South American cocaine
destined for Europe and the US
Greece:
a gateway to Europe for traffickers smuggling cannabis and heroin from
the Middle East and Southwest Asia to the West and precursor chemicals
to the East; some South American cocaine transits or is consumed in
Greece
Grenada:
small-scale cannabis cultivation; lesser transshipment point for marijuana
and cocaine to US
Guatemala:
transit country for cocaine shipments; minor producer of illicit opium
poppy and cannabis for the international drug trade; active eradication
program in 1996 effectively eliminated the cannabis crop; proximity
to Mexico makes Guatemala a major staging area for drugs (cocaine shipments)
Guyana:
transshipment point for narcotics from South America - primarily Venezuela
- to Europe and the US; producer of cannabis
Haiti:
major Caribbean transshipment point for cocaine en route to the US and
Europe
Honduras:
transshipment point for drugs and narcotics; illicit producer of cannabis,
cultivated on small plots and used principally for local consumption;
corruption is a major problem
Hong Kong:
a hub for Southeast Asian heroin trade; transshipment and money-laundering
center; increasing indigenous amphetamine abuse
Hungary:
major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and cannabis and
transit point for South American cocaine destined for Western Europe;
limited producer of precursor chemicals, particularly for amphetamines
and methamphetamines
India:
world's largest producer of licit opium for the pharmaceutical trade,
but an undetermined quantity of opium is diverted to illicit international
drug markets; major transit country for illicit narcotics produced in
neighboring countries; illicit producer of hashish and methaqualone
Indonesia:
illicit producer of cannabis largely for domestic use; possible growing
role as transshipment point for Golden Triangle heroin
Iran:
despite substantial interdiction efforts, Iran remains a key transshipment
point for Southwest Asian heroin to Europe; domestic consumption of
narcotics remains a persistent problem and Iranian press reports estimate
that there are at least 1.2 million drug users in the country
Ireland:
transshipment point for and consumer of hashish from North Africa to
the UK and Netherlands and of European-produced synthetic drugs; minor
transshipment point for heroin and cocaine destined for Western Europe
Israel:
increasingly concerned about cocaine and heroin abuse; drugs arrive
in country from Lebanon and increasingly Jordan
Italy:
important gateway for and consumer of Latin American cocaine and Southwest
Asian heroin entering the European market
Jamaica:
transshipment point for cocaine from Central and South America to North
America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has
an active manual cannabis eradication program
Kazakhstan:
significant illicit cultivation of cannabis and limited cultivation
of opium poppy and ephedra (for the drug ephedrone); limited government
eradication program; cannabis consumed largely in the CIS; used as transshipment
point for illicit drugs to Russia, North America, and Western Europe
from Southwest Asia
Kenya:
widespread harvesting of small, wild plots of marijuana and qat (chat);
transit country for South Asian heroin destined for Europe and, sometimes,
North America; Indian methaqualone also transits on way to South Africa
Kyrgyzstan:
limited illicit cultivator of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for CIS
consumption; limited government eradication program; increasingly used
as transshipment point for illicit drugs to Russia and Western Europe
from Southwest Asia
Laos:
world's third-largest illicit opium producer (estimated cultivation
in 1999 - 21,800 hectares, a 16% decrease over 1998; estimated potential
production in 1999 - 140 metric tons, about the same as in 1998); potential
heroin producer; transshipment point for heroin and methamphetamines
produced in Burma; illicit producer of cannabis
Latvia:
transshipment point for opiates and cannabis from Central and Southwest
Asia to Western Europe and Scandinavia and Latin American cocaine and
some synthetics from Western Europe to CIS; limited production of illicit
amphetamines, ephedrine, and ecstasy for export
Lebanon:
inconsequential producer of hashish; some heroin processing mostly in
the Bekaa valley; a Lebanese/Syrian eradication campaign started in
the early 1990s has practically eliminated the opium and cannabis crops
Liberia:
increasingly a transshipment point for Southeast and Southwest Asian
heroin and South American cocaine for the European and US markets
Lithuania:
transshipment point for opiates and other illicit drugs from Southwest
Asia, Latin America, and Western Europe to Western Europe and Scandinavia
Macedonia, The
Former Yugoslav Republic of:
increasing transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and hashish;
minor transit point for South American cocaine destined for Europe
Madagascar:
illicit producer of cannabis (cultivated and wild varieties) used mostly
for domestic consumption; transshipment point for heroin
Malaysia:
transit point for some illicit drugs going to Western markets; drug
trafficking prosecuted vigorously and carries severe penalties
Malta:
minor transshipment point for hashish from North Africa to Western Europe
Martinique:
transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe
Mauritius:
minor consumer and transshipment point for heroin from South Asia; small
amounts of cannabis produced and consumed locally
Mexico:
illicit cultivation of opium poppy (cultivation in 1998 - 5,500 hectares;
potential production - 60 metric tons) and cannabis cultivation in 1998
- 4,600 hectares; government eradication efforts have been key in keeping
illicit crop levels low; major supplier of heroin and marijuana to the
US market; continues as the primary transshipment country for US-bound
cocaine from South America; involved in the production and distribution
of methamphetamines; upsurge in drug-related violence and official corruption;
major drug syndicates growing more powerful
Moldova:
limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for CIS consumption;
transshipment point for illicit drugs from Southwest Asia via Central
Asia to Russia, Western Europe and possibly the US
Morocco:
illicit producer of hashish; trafficking on the increase for both domestic
and international drug markets; shipments of hashish mostly directed
to Western Europe; transit point for cocaine from South America destined
for Western Europe
Mozambique:
Southern African transit hub for South American cocaine probably destined
for the European and US markets; producer of hashish and methaqualone
Nepal:
illicit producer of cannabis for the domestic and international drug
markets; transit point for opiates from Southeast Asia to the West
Netherlands:
major European producer of illicit amphetamines and other synthetic
drugs; important gateway for cocaine, heroin, and hashish entering Europe
Netherlands Antilles:
money-laundering center; transshipment point for South American drugs
bound for the US and Europe
Nicaragua:
transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and transshipment
point for arms-for-drugs dealing
Nigeria:
facilitates movement of heroin en route from Southeast and Southwest
Asia to Western Europe and North America; increasingly a transit route
for cocaine from South America intended for European, East Asian, and
North American markets
Pakistan:
producer of illicit opium and hashish for the international drug trade
(poppy cultivation in 1999 - 1,570 hectares, a 48% drop from 1998 because
of eradication and alternative development); key transit area for Southwest
Asian heroin moving to Western markets; narcotics still move from Afghanistan
into Balochistan Province
Panama:
major cocaine transshipment point and major drug-money-laundering center;
no recent signs of coca cultivation; monitoring of financial transactions
is improving, yet Panama has failed to prosecute anyone for money laundering
- official corruption remains a major problem
Paraguay:
illicit producer of cannabis, most or all of which is consumed in South
America; transshipment country for Bolivian cocaine headed for Southern
Cone markets and Europe and a limited amount to the US
Peru:
until recently the world's largest coca leaf producer, Peru has reduced
the area of coca under cultivation by 24% to 38,700 hectares at the
end of 1999; most of cocaine base is shipped to neighboring Colombia,
Bolivia, and Brazil for processing into cocaine for the international
drug market, but exports of finished cocaine are increasing by maritime
conveyance to Mexico, US, and Europe
Philippines:
exports locally produced marijuana and hashish to East Asia, the US,
and other Western markets; serves as a transit point for heroin and
crystal methamphetamine
Poland:
major illicit producer of amphetamines for the international market;
minor transshipment point for Asian and Latin American illicit drugs
to Western Europe
Portugal:
important gateway country for Latin American cocaine entering the European
market; transshipment point for hashish from North Africa to Europe;
consumer of Southwest Asian heroin
Romania:
important transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin transiting
the Balkan route and small amounts of Latin American cocaine bound for
Western Europe
Russia:
limited cultivation of illicit cannabis and opium poppy and producer
of amphetamines, mostly for domestic consumption; government has active
eradication program; increasingly used as transshipment point for Southwest
and Southeast Asian opiates and cannabis and Latin American cocaine
to Western Europe, possibly to the US, and growing domestic market;
major source of heroin precursor chemicals
Saint Kitts and
Nevis:
transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and
Europe
Saint Lucia:
transit point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe
Saint Vincent
and the Grenadines:
transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and
Europe
Saudi Arabia:
death penalty for traffickers; increasing consumption of heroin and
cocaine
Senegal:
transshipment point for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin moving
to Europe and North America; illicit cultivator of cannabis
Serbia and Montenegro:
transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin moving to Western Europe
on the Balkan route
Singapore:
transit point for Golden Triangle heroin going to North America, Western
Europe, and the Third World; also a money-laundering center
Slovakia:
transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin bound for Western Europe
Slovenia:
minor transit point for Southwest Asian heroin bound for Western Europe,
and for precursor chemicals
South Africa:
transshipment center for heroin and cocaine; cocaine consumption on
the rise; world's largest market for illicit methaqualone, usually imported
illegally from India through various east African countries; illicit
cultivation of marijuana
Spain:
key European gateway country for Latin American cocaine and North African
hashish entering the European market; transshipment point for and consumer
of Southwest Asian heroin
Suriname:
transshipment point for South American drugs destined mostly for Europe
Switzerland:
because of more stringent government regulations, used significantly
less as a money-laundering center; transit country for and consumer
of South American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin
Syria:
a transit point for opiates and hashish bound for regional and Western
markets
Tajikistan:
limited illicit cultivation of cannabis, mostly for domestic consumption;
opium poppy cultivation negligible in 1998 because of government eradication
program; major transshipment point for illicit drugs from Southwest
Asia to Russia and Western Europe
Tanzania:
growing role in transshipment of Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin
and South American cocaine destined for European and US markets and
of South Asian methaqualone bound for Southern Africa
Thailand:
a minor producer of opium, heroin, and marijuana; major illicit transit
point for heroin en route to the international drug market from Burma
and Laos; eradication efforts have reduced the area of cannabis cultivation
and shifted some production to neighboring countries; opium poppy cultivation
has been reduced by eradication efforts; also a drug money-laundering
center; minor role in amphetamine production for regional consumption;
increasing indigenous abuse of methamphetamines and heroin
Togo:
transit hub for Nigerian heroin and cocaine traffickers
Trinidad and
Tobago:
transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and
Europe; producer of cannabis
Turkey:
key transit route for Southwest Asian heroin to Western Europe and -
to a far lesser extent the US - via air, land, and sea routes; major
Turkish, Iranian, and other international trafficking organizations
operate out of Istanbul; laboratories to convert imported morphine base
into heroin are in remote regions of Turkey as well as near Istanbul;
government maintains strict controls over areas of legal opium poppy
cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate
Turkmenistan:
limited illicit cultivator of opium poppy, mostly for domestic consumption;
limited government eradication program; increasingly used as transshipment
point for illicit drugs from Southwest Asia to Russia and Western Europe;
also a transshipment point for acetic anhydride destined for Afghanistan
Turks and Caicos
Islands:
transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US
Ukraine:
limited cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for CIS consumption;
some synthetic drug production for export to West; limited government
eradication program; used as transshipment point for opiates and other
illicit drugs from Africa, Latin America, and Turkey, and to Europe
and Russia; drug-related money laundering a minor, but growing, problem
United Arab Emirates:
growing role as heroin transshipment and money-laundering center due
to its proximity to southwest Asian producing countries and the bustling
free trade zone in Dubai
United Kingdom:
gateway country for Latin American cocaine entering the European market;
producer and major consumer of synthetic drugs, synthetic precursor
chemicals; major consumer of Southwest Asian heroin; money-laundering
center
United States:
consumer of cocaine shipped from Colombia through Mexico and the Caribbean;
consumer of heroin, marijuana, and increasingly methamphetamines from
Mexico; consumer of high-quality Southeast Asian heroin; illicit producer
of cannabis, marijuana, depressants, stimulants, hallucinogens, and
methamphetamines; drug-money-laundering center
Uzbekistan:
limited illicit cultivation of cannabis and very small amounts of opium
poppy, mostly for domestic consumption, almost entirely eradicated by
an effective government eradication program; increasingly used as transshipment
point for illicit drugs from Afghanistan to Russia and Western Europe
and for acetic anhydride destined for Afghanistan
Venezuela:
illicit producer of opium for the international drug trade on a small
scale; however, large quantities of cocaine and heroin transit the country
from Colombia bound for US and Europe; important money-laundering hub;
active eradication program primarily targeting opium; increasing signs
of drug-related activities by Colombian insurgents on border
Vietnam:
minor producer of opium poppy with 2,100 hectares cultivated in 1999,
capable of producing 11 metric tons of opium; probably minor transit
point for Southeast Asian heroin destined for the US and Europe; growing
opium/heroin addiction; possible small-scale heroin production
Zambia:
transshipment point for methaqualone, heroin, and cocaine bound for
Southern Africa and Europe; regional money-laundering center
Zimbabwe:
significant transit point for African cannabis and South Asian heroin,
mandrax, and methamphetamines destined for the South African and European
markets
Taiwan:
considered an important heroin transit point; major problem with domestic
consumption of methamphetamines and heroin
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