Russia's Narcotics Control Office Steps Up Efforts to Destroy Drug Trafficking

DAGOMYS (KRASNODAR TERRITORY) RIA Novosti - The main goal of Russia's Federal Narcotics Control Office is to destroy the mechanism behind drug trafficking, Viktor Cherkesov, the Office's Director, said Friday at a conference on anti-drug policies that was held as part of a national media forum in Dagomys, on Russia's Black Sea coast.

According to Mr Cherkesov, the Federal Narcotics Control Office has now become a head agency, one that coordinates the activity of other Russian law-enforcement bodies involved in the battle against drug trafficking, such as the Federal Security Service, the Interior Ministry, and the Federal Customs Service.

The Federal Narcotics Control Office is tasked with the creation and introduction of a common databank on illicit drug trade as well as control over the legal production of and trade in narcotic and psychotropic substances, Mr Cherkesov said.

In their efforts against drugs trafficking, Russia's law-enforcement agencies attach particular importance to cooperation with their counterparts in the CIS countries that are signatories to the Collective Security Treaty (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Armenia and Belarus).

According to Mr Cherkesov, a joint operation carried out last year by law-enforcers of CST member states led to the detection of 1,400 drugs-related crimes and the seizure of two tons of various narcotic substance and about the same amount of precursors. Also, more than 2,300 non-related crimes were detected as a result of that operation, code-named "Channel 2003."

Mr Cherkesov argues that the problem of drugs has assumed epidemic proportions in Russia by now. According to him, the number of drug addicts in this country has increased more than nine-fold in the past decade. 'Last year, over 4,000 addicts were registered at rehabilitation centers across Russia, with the overall number of drug users running into millions," he said.

Especially alarming is the rapid spread of drug abuse among younger generations, Mr Cherkesov said. According to the latest surveys, young people under 30 account for two-thirds of all those taking drugs in Russia, he revealed.

A serious threat to the Russian population's health is posed by drug trafficking and the administration of narcotic and psychotropic substances that is not medically prescribed, Mr Cherkesov said.

According to the Federal Narcotics Control Office, there are some 950 criminal groups presently operating on Russia's drug market. About 330 of these gangs are formed along ethnic lines, and have a wide network of connections outside the country. They have organized stable, well-protected channels for the supply of large batches of drugs, Mr Cherkesov said.

Speaking of the production of drugs inside Russia, he said that according to information obtained by the Federal Narcotics Control Office, homemade production methods prevail in this country and the prevalent types of drugs produced include ephedrone, pervitin, and catinon, highly popular with young people.

Drug smuggling is one other outstanding problem, Mr Cherkesov said. Drug smugglers keep changing their routes, and more and more transnational criminal cells penetrate into the Russian market, he lamented.

"Of the total amount of the illicit drugs seized [by Russian law-enforcers], including heroin, cocaine and amphetamines, more than 50 percent are of foreign origin," Mr Cherkesov said.

Reviewing the international situation, the official pointed out that according to expert estimates, the world's illegal drug trade turnover is worth an annual 600 billion dollars to one trillion dollars while profits yielded by drug trafficking are 300 to 2,000 percent." About 200 million people across the world take narcotic drugs on a regular basis, Mr. Cherkesov revealed.