AZERBAIJAN TURNED INTO ACTIVE DRUG TRANSIT ZONE DUE TO CLOSING “BALKAN ROUTE”

“International strategy of drug control” latest report of the US Department of State includes an item explaining the turning of Azerbaijan into a zone of active transit of drugs from Afghanistan and Central Asia to Western Europe by absence of “the Balkan route,” which was interrupted as a result of conflicts in former Yugoslav republics. According to the information of “Echo” Baku newspaper, “De Facto” agency reports, “US is concerned with the increase of drug consumption in Azerbaijan.” “The State Department not only notes growth of drug use in Azerbaijan, but also emphasizes the need to take trenchant measures in struggle against drug addiction and illegal circulation of drugs,” – the report notes. At the same time the Department of State acknowledges Azeri police’s lack of necessary equipment and modern achievements make prevention of drug transportation difficult. The level of control capacities at the Iranian-Azeri frontier also hampers solving the problem, the US State Department report says.