Iran Official: Heroin, Methamphetamine in Afghanistan ‘Serious Threat’
Hossein Zolfaqari, the secretary-general of the Iranian Drug Control Headquarters, claimed on the sidelines of a meeting in Vienna that heroin and methamphetamine are being produced underground in Afghanistan.
Speaking at the 68th annual session of the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs in Vienna with the Dutch ambassador, Zolfaqari stated that Iran shares a 2,000-kilometer border with Afghanistan and Pakistan, which is managed unilaterally.
According to him, heroin and methamphetamine production in Afghanistan poses a “serious threat.”
Zolfaqari, who represents the President of Iran and the Secretary-General of the Drug Control Headquarters, said: “The production of drugs, especially heroin and methamphetamine, has gone underground in this country, and this is a serious threat that must be addressed. Iran has a 2,000-kilometer shared border with Afghanistan and Pakistan, which is controlled unilaterally.”
He also stressed that European countries should assist Afghan farmers in developing alternative crops. Zolfaqari highlighted the importance of cooperation between Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan in the joint fight against drug trafficking and border security.
“If there is sincere and decisive coordination and cooperation between these countries in combating drug trafficking, it may be possible to prevent its smuggling to regional and international markets,” said Sadiq Shinwari, a military analyst.
“If they really have such reports, why did they not share this issue with the deputy minister for counter-narcotics of the Ministry of Interior, who recently visited Iran? All of this is propaganda by Iran and Pakistan to tarnish the image of the Afghan people and the Islamic Emirate,” said Ahmad Khan Andar, another military analyst.
This Iranian official’s concerns about the production of synthetic drugs in Afghanistan come as the Islamic Emirate’s Ministry of Interior previously stated that synthetic drugs are smuggled into Afghanistan from neighboring countries and that these countries should take steps to prevent it.
