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Afghanistan's narcotics-fuelled insurgency
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| 15 November 2006 |
Afghan opium production has reached record levels in 2006. Much of this increase has occurred in the country's southern provinces, which have experienced a resurgence of the Taliban insurgency. The extent to which Taliban operatives directly encourage farmers to cultivate opium poppies remains unclear. Some Taliban units reportedly collect tolls, protection money and other financial contributions from drug traffickers in areas they control. Some Afghan poppy farmers appear to have formed local alliances with Taliban fighters to obtain protection against government efforts to suppress opium cultivation.
Neighbouring countries complain about the flow of drugs into and through their territories, which facilitates local narcotics consumption and corrupts local law enforcement personnel. Dealers throughout Europe and Asia rely on Afghan supplies of opium and heroin to satisfy local demand for the drugs. To manage this threat, various international organisations and foreign governments have launched initiatives to counter the narcotics-insurgency nexus.
China's role
Although China does not lie along the 'northern route' through which Afghan narcotics enter Central Asia and Europe, the Chinese government wants to reduce the disruptive regional effects of the trafficking. Chinese firms have developed a growing stake in Central Asian commerce, especially in the energy sector. Drug trafficking and insurgencies threaten to disrupt regional economies by impeding legitimate trade and undermining investor confidence.
In addition, the Chinese authorities remain concerned about the Taliban's ties with Islamist extremist groups advocating independence for China's Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, home to around 10 million of China's Muslim Uighurs. Although Uighur separatist sentiment and militancy has subsided in recent years, the influx of cheap Afghan narcotics to a still politically restive and socio-economically volatile region could reignite ethnic apprehension that Beijing has sought to assuage.
Multinational efforts
Western leaders acknowledge that the current network of international institutions involved in Afghanistan needs restructuring. In early November, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer called for a major re-division of responsibilities between NATO and the EU in helping the Afghan government manage the threat of narco-terrorism, with the alliance focusing on training the Afghan National Army and the EU collectively assuming complete responsibility for training the Afghan National Police. The aim is for the reorganisation to accelerate training of both bodies and enhance their mutual co-ordination. Although NATO forces win many battles, the Afghan army and police frequently lack the capacity to consolidate the victory, leaving the area contested. Scheffer and other Western leaders have not adequately exploited opportunities to co-operate with the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) and Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO) on this issue.
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© 2006 Jane's Information Group
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