DUSHANBE, September 4, Asia-Plus – The first stage of the anti-drug operation conducted by member nations of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), dubbed Channel 2007, ended Monday night.
The operation was aimed at discovering and shutting down drug-smuggling routes.
According to information posted on the website of the Tajik Drug Control Agency (DCA), during the first stage of the operation, which ran from August 28 to September 3, the law enforcement agencies and border guards of Tajikistan prevented 16 drug-trafficking crimes. 116.495 kilograms of heroin, 70.12 kilograms of raw opium and 86.963 kilograms of cannabis have been seized in Tajikistan over the first stage of the operation. Besides, 19 persons, including one Afghan national and one CIS citizen, have been arrested in Tajikistan over the report period.
Avaz Yuldoshev, a spokesman for the Tajik counternarcotics agency, said that Tajikistan ahs accounted for 68 percent of heroin and 69 percent of raw opium seized during the first stage of the operation.
In the meantime, Russia’s news agency RIA Novosti reported that More than 10 metric tons of drugs had been seized in a joint operation of the CSTO member nations.
During the first stage of the operation, 4.3 metric tons of opium and the same amount of marijuana were confiscated, RIA Novosti said. .
Counternarcotics task units also seized 191 kilograms of heroin, 226 kilograms of cannabis, 26 kilograms of ecstasy, 11 kilograms of cocaine, 626 kilograms of poppy straw, 7 kilograms of amphetamines, and 692 kilograms of other dangerous drugs.
In addition, 223 metric tons of drug-making chemicals, or precursors, were confiscated, 687 fire arms, nearly 15,000 rounds of ammunition, and more than 100 knives. More than $1.7 million worth of valuables were also seized from drug couriers.
This year 17 drug supply chains have been shut down, including drug trafficking routes from China to Mongolia, Belarus to Russia, and Poland to Europe.
Operation Channel has been run annually by anti-narcotic units of the CSTO countries since 2003.
Six thousand task forces were formed from 91,000 drug officers, security agents, border guards and customs officers from Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. This year anti-drug squads from Azerbaijan, the United States, China, Latvia, Lithuania, Mongolia, Poland, Ukraine, and Finland took part in the operation as observers.
