NCJ Number
151459
Date Published
1994
Length
47 pages
Annotation
This is a brief summary of the dynamics of Southwest Asian drug trafficking and its role in trafficking networks throughout the world.
Abstract
The typical smuggling chain begins with a farmer in need of funds, who plants opium poppies for the promise of higher profits. The document traces the opium from the Asian farmer's field to its ultimate destination, Western Europe or the United States. The people involved are brought together by opportunity and profit, not necessarily by organizational ties. However, there are some groups, often formed along familial lines, which control the entire process, from cultivation in Southwest Asia to wholesale distribution in the United States. The document describes illicit drug cultivation and production and drug trafficking within and outside the Southwest Asian region. The outlook for the drug situation in Southwest Asia is not promising. Without substantial restructuring of the legal systems in the region, major traffickers will continue to evade imprisonment. There are specific comments regarding the outlook for Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran. Executive summary, footnotes, figures, photographs, appendixes