US admits failure in curbing drugs in Afghanistan

[fatman17]

US admits failure in curbing drugs in Afghanistan

Thu, 24 Dec 2009


The US administration has admitted that Washington has failed to curb narcotics production and trafficking in Afghanistan.

The US State Department on Wednesday criticized Washington's 2-billion-dollar plan to combat the drug trade in Afghanistan for poor oversight and lack of strategy.

According to a report by the State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, the US counter-narcotics efforts do not have clear objectives.

The report also criticized a shift of focus from eradicating poppy fields to interdiction of drug organizations and alternative crop projects, despite a consensus among US agencies.

The report also added that US embassies in Afghanistan and Pakistan do not coordinate well on the issue.

It also criticizes poorly-written contracts for counternarcotics works.

"The department has not clarified an end state for counternarcotics efforts, engaged in long-term planning, or established performance measures for its multi-pillared approach to counter poppy cultivation and the resultant illegal narcotics industry," the report said.

"Although the department is planning new counternarcotics actions ... there is no agreement on appropriate roles for either civilian agencies or the US military," it said.

Afghanistan produces roughly 90 percent of the world's illicit opium.

 

[S-2]

We may lack coherency in all phases of implementation but somebody's doing something right for a change-

UNODC Afghan Opium Survey 2009

Cultivation has gone from 193,000 hectares in 2007 to 123,000 hectares in 2009 according to the graph on page one. That's about a 36% decrease in the space of two years. Further, it remains a fact that the vast majority of cultivation is occurring in areas of heavy taliban influence-Farah, Nimroz, Helmand, Oruzgan, and Kandahar.

Helmand, by itself, saw its production fall from 103,000 to 69,833 (see pg. 2 for a chart of cultivation by province by year) in just the last year. That's huge and in the single most important province for opium production. 20 of 34 provinces are opium-free. Many others show extremely modest levels.

It's clear that troops being engaged in Helmand beyond the limits of Garmsir has had an effect to a region that had once been ceded to the taliban and was their personal poppy farm until this past April.

Helmand still is all that but is changing for the better, evidently, despite ourselves.

Thanks.

 

[pak-yes]

And look who's survey is it UN.The puppet of US.American soldiers can barely move in helmand how did the UN managed to get such a comprehensive survey.do Taliban submit the records to government about how much poppy they cultivate or do UN people go and knock at every afghan door to ask how much poppy are they cultivating?

 

[Elmo]

And look who's survey is it UN.The puppet of US.American soldiers can barely move in helmand how did the UN managed to get such a comprehensive survey.do Taliban submit the records to government about how much poppy they cultivate or do UN people go and knock at every afghan door to ask how much poppy are they cultivating?

The methodology's given on page one and in the footnote on page 5 of the UN report....


"The area available for agriculture was updated from 76,235 km2 in 2008 to 77,217 km2 in 2009.
2 Poppy free provinces are those which are estimated to have less than 100 ha of opium cultivation.
3 Due to a change in methodology and new information available on village population size, the figures
from 2008 and 2009 are not directly comparable. Estimates are based on a population of 25.5 million and
an average household size of 6.5 persons for 2009 (Afghan year 1387) and a population of 24.5 million for
2008 (Afghan year 1386). Source: Government of Afghanistan, Central Statistical Office.
4 In 2008, the fresh and dry opium prices at harvest time were based on farmers responses collected through
the Annual Opium Survey, which was conducted slightly before the opium harvest. In 2009, prices at
harvest time were derived from the opium price monitoring system and refer to the month when opium
harvest actually took place in the different regions of the country.
5 Source: Government of Afghanistan, Central Statistical Office."

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

No comment here - 150,000 soliders and this .. no comment really

 

[gambit]

No comment here - 150,000 soliders and this .. no comment really

No comment here -- all those Qurans and mullahs and this -- no commment really.

 

[illuminatus]

We may lack coherency in all phases of implementation but somebody's doing something right for a change-

UNODC Afghan Opium Survey 2009

Cultivation has gone from 193,000 hectares in 2007 to 123,000 hectares in 2009 according to the graph on page one. That's about a 36% decrease in the space of two years. Further, it remains a fact that the vast majority of cultivation is occurring in areas of heavy taliban influence-Farah, Nimroz, Helmand, Oruzgan, and Kandahar.

Helmand, by itself, saw its production fall from 103,000 to 69,833 (see pg. 2 for a chart of cultivation by province by year) in just the last year. That's huge and in the single most important province for opium production. 20 of 34 provinces are opium-free. Many others show extremely modest levels.

It's clear that troops being engaged in Helmand beyond the limits of Garmsir has had an effect to a region that had once been ceded to the taliban and was their personal poppy farm until this past April.

Helmand still is all that but is changing for the better, evidently, despite ourselves.

Thanks.

No need for optimism or excitement. Whether there has been a slight improvement doesn't negate the fact that Afghanistan still is the worlds largest opium and hashish supplier. The country has also become an important producer of heroin, which is derived from opium. Corrupt Nato and US forces also deal in exporting drugs from that country.

 

[Cheetah786]

We may lack coherency in all phases of implementation but somebody's doing something right for a change-

UNODC Afghan Opium Survey 2009

Cultivation has gone from 193,000 hectares in 2007 to 123,000 hectares in 2009 according to the graph on page one. That's about a 36% decrease in the space of two years. Further, it remains a fact that the vast majority of cultivation is occurring in areas of heavy taliban influence-Farah, Nimroz, Helmand, Oruzgan, and Kandahar.

Helmand, by itself, saw its production fall from 103,000 to 69,833 (see pg. 2 for a chart of cultivation by province by year) in just the last year. That's huge and in the single most important province for opium production. 20 of 34 provinces are opium-free. Many others show extremely modest levels.

It's clear that troops being engaged in Helmand beyond the limits of Garmsir has had an effect to a region that had once been ceded to the taliban and was their personal poppy farm until this past April.

Helmand still is all that but is changing for the better, evidently, despite ourselves.

Thanks.

When Talibans were in full control Afghanistan poppy production went from 90% supply to the world two only 2% and after there Fall its back up to same level.

There is only two ways of getting rid of this garbage one Talibans Way or buy it from the farmers and use it for Morphine production farmers will get what they need Afghans government will collect taxes and world supply of heroin will drop significantly.

 

[BATMAN]

I remember once reading news that NATO used radio broad cast to promote popy crop in Helmand province.
NATO encouraged the afghans to cultivate popy crop because this is a handsom earning....besides it keep the wrath of US/NATO/ANA away.
If US find any province not cultivating popy those are labled as Taliban and eventually got killed under the same pretext.
Most of the heroin is exported to Russia and all parties get share.

 

[S-2]

Batman, America hasn't retaliated against those provinces whom are poppy-free. That's twenty provinces, btw.

As to the taliban, Cheetah, all you need to read is what happened to opium between 1996 when the taliban took power and 1999, three years later. The chart on page one spells out that the taliban were hardly (nor are now) without sin when it comes to opium.

Consistent growth in those years.

Today, Afghanistan's largest area of opium production coincides remarkably closely to the classic taliban heartland of Kandahar, Oruzgan, and Helmand. About 80% of Afghanistan's opium is grown right there (98,600 hec of 123,000 total).

That's not by mistake that the problem is centered there.

 

[Barrett]

I don't know in what fools paradise are some of the members living in, read this for a better understanding.

Asia Times Online :: South Asia news, business and economy from India and Pakistan


And this

http://www.defence.pk/forums/u-s-foreign-affairs/37788-u-s-war-afghanistan-became-worlds-biggest-drug-business-kills-tens-thous.html#post533183

 

[BATMAN]

S2 reply:
With few thousand troops on ground and mostly posted in and around Kabul........ you pretend to know all Afghanistan?
I have no doubts in my mind that if troops in afghanistan cannot controll opium/popy crop they cannot control the rebels which happens to be the majority population of Afghanistan.