Drugs and terrorism have become an instrument of international politics. Drugs have been increasingly used by certain actors in international life, especially the United States and its Western allies, to enhance their hegemony. Such actions not only destroy the youth and entire nations, but also create chains of corruption in countries which are then used for political coups, terrorist attacks, “self-financing” of opposition movements, and bribing corrupt politicians. The increased use of drugs in the military was exemplified by the United States in Southeast Asia, Afghanistan, which “set an example” for the maintenance and enhancement of military aggression in many countries in armed conflicts.
This is particularly evident today in the use of drugs by militants of the Nazi authorities in Kiev, by the actions of foreign mercenaries in eastern Ukraine. For example, a captured Ukrainian militant said that Ukrainian soldiers were supplied with Teofidrin and other special drugs to take before battle, which helped them lose fear and lower their threshold for pain. Earlier, Sultan Khamzaev, a member of the Russian State Duma Committee on Security and Counteraction to Corruption, said that narcotic stimulants to dull pain and induce a sense of euphoria were being distributed among Ukrainian mercenary units. Anton Moroz, a Ukrainian prisoner of war in the 81st Airborne Assault Brigade, who laid down his arms in the town of Rubezhnoe, spoke about the mobilization of HIV-positive and drug addicts into the AFU.
Thus drugs have long become politics, actively substituting their “economic” component. That is why the said world evil, like terrorism, cannot be eradicated by Western “fighters against drugs” seeking to control the world. It is only where the fight against terrorism and drugs is not led by the US and its satellites that one can see positive change on this front. This was the case during the US aggression in Southeast Asia and in a number of other armed conflicts initiated by the United States.
In Afghanistan, for example, it was not during the US occupation, but only under the Taliban (a movement banned in the Russian Federation) that drug production and exports were seriously curtailed. Once in power, the Taliban ruthlessly destroyed opium poppy plantations. In 2000, Taliban leader Mullah Omar declared poppy cultivation an offence against Allah and poppy crops began disappearing across the country, with 99% reduction in production. But at the behest of the US, war broke out in that country, the Taliban were defeated and opium once again “blossomed” with lush buds. After consolidating its power, the Taliban resumed the fight against drugs in the country in spring of this year, starting with poppy fields and banning poppy cultivation, drug imports and exports.
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimates that the number of people who use drugs has increased by more than 20% in the last ten years. A projection based on demographic change suggests that by 2030 the number of people who use drugs will increase globally by 11%, and by 40% in Africa, for example, due to its rapidly growing and young population.
According to the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) report published on June 14, there has been a marked increase in drug production in Europe, with more and more new psychoactive substances being sold and consumed in the EU. The EU is becoming a major producer of certain drugs, produced both for domestic consumption and for sale on the world market. This is particularly evidenced by the fact that more than 350 drug laboratories were dismantled in the EU in 2020. The report notes that the uncertainty of the drug situation in Europe is aggravated by the crisis in Ukraine, the consequences of which could have serious consequences for smuggling routes and the functioning of the drug market, as well as for the health care and support needs of drug users fleeing war.
According to law enforcement experts in Central Asia, the 21st century has been marked by the rapid development of synthetic psychoactive drugs and their proliferation. As official data shows, about 150 new models of synthetic drugs appear every year in this region alone; it takes law enforcement officers at least two months to study each new sample, which is enough time for a new wave of addiction to appear. Synthetic drugs have proved to be stronger and more dangerous than ordinary ones, they exert more aggressive effects on the body and an addiction develops much faster. Deaths due to the use of synthetic drugs occur more frequently, their use leads to irreparable brain damage and rapid addiction. Law enforcement officials note that the number of people taking synthetic drugs has increased by 25% among the perpetrators.
Law enforcement experts in Central Asia believe that April’s decision by the Taliban leadership to ban poppy cultivation throughout Afghanistan may have influenced the growing demand for synthetic drugs. Experts also note that previously most synthetic drugs were smuggled from China, more recently from Europe, especially via the Baltic Sea. But the biggest amount comes through Ukraine. On this occasion, Ukrainian political analyst Igor Druz points out: “The US Department of State, as well as several EU governments, are implementing the legalization and distribution of drugs around the world. The aim is to reduce the population, atomize it, change the consciousness of the masses and increase their spiritual degradation. A “biomass” addicted to all kinds of “dope” is much easier to manage than a community of sober and united people who understand their interests and stand up for the future of their children.”
As noted earlier, drugs and opioids have become a “consolation” for Americans from the failure of the domestic social policies. The promotion of drug addiction by authorities in American cities under the guise of overdose prevention was reported by Fox News on June 1, describing even a public service announcement in the US that promotes drug addiction. In particular, one can see the following text approved by the New York City Department of Health in the city subway: “Don’t be ashamed you are using, be empowered that you are using safely.”
Not without explicit mentorship from Washington, the Ukrainian authorities have authorized the use of marijuana for medical purposes to “treat” AFU soldiers and are preparing to produce marijuana-based drugs. As Ukrainian Minister of Health Viktor Lyashko said recently: “We have prepared a legislative framework to ensure the full production cycle of cannabis-based preparations in Ukraine: from cultivation and processing to full-scale production.”
Valery Kulikov, political expert, exclusively for the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook”.
