We have yet to see in which direction Afghanistan will move. But one thing is clear: the Taliban’s seizure of power has many facets and will affect the global drug trade as well. This is what Anabel Hernandez * wrote in an analysis on “The Taliban and the Mexican Drug Cartels: What Connects Them”quoted by “Deutsche Welle“.
Many experts and researchers have long described the Taliban movement as a “drug terrorist organization.” Their rise to power in Afghanistan will certainly lead to a shift in the drug market, which will also affect Mexican drug cartels.
Drugs bring money and power
Although Mexico and Afghanistan are far from the world map and there are great historical, sociological and religious differences between them, they definitely have one thing in common: both are financially dependent on the drug trade, and both are forcibly expanding their territories and political your power. Prior to Mexico’s June election, cartels threatened and killed unpopular candidates, funded election campaigns and bought votes for their candidates – more openly than ever before.
As early as October 2009, renowned experts and analysts presented to the US Congress the global danger posed by the Taliban and Mexican cartels as “transnational drug companies” and pointed out how dangerous the similarities and similarities between them have increased since then. .
And governments are involved
Mexico, Afghanistan and Myanmar produce 95 percent of the world’s opium poppy. The three countries are involved in the illicit production and trafficking of heroin and other opioids. In Mexico, drug cartels are involved in this “role” – with the support of government officials.
In Afghanistan, according to US and UN figures, these are groups directly linked to the Taliban. Their deals have also been made with the favor of the government, including those backed by the United States. During the congressional hearing, experts said it was estimated that in 2009, 50 percent of Afghanistan’s gross domestic product (GDP) was provided by the illicit drug trade.
Production stimulates consumption in Afghanistan
The Taliban’s public stance on opium poppy production has always been ambiguous: the consumption of opium products is banned, but not the production and sale.
According to a US State Department report from early 2021, much of opium production in Afghanistan took place in regions that were under the control or influence of the Taliban. Respectively, the Taliban have significant revenues from the drug business. This not only fuels conflicts, but also undermines the rule of law, encourages corruption and contributes to increasing drug use in Afghanistan.
A UN report from April 2021 also found a direct link between the Taliban and opium poppy production in Afghanistan. The area for poppy cultivation in one year (from 2019 to 2020) has increased from 163,000 to 224,000 hectares, although in 2019 at least 21 hectares were destroyed.
Dangerous proximity
Many large cartels have formed in Mexico thanks to the international drug business. However, the fastest growing organization is the Sinaloa cartel, which also controls the country’s richest crop of opium poppies. This should actually make it a competitor to the Taliban, but since the two organizations serve different markets, they can even complement each other.
According to current estimates by the US Drug Enforcement Agency, the Sinaloa cartel is virtually a monopoly on the heroin market in the United States. According to the Pentagon, Mexicans are also represented in 60 percent of the world’s countries – along with West Africa and Europe, also in India, China and Russia, ie. countries that sell drugs from Afghanistan. However, the Sinaloa cartel mostly serves the demand for cocaine from South America and synthetic drugs. This is not the first time that groups that should in principle compete are coming together to increase their profits and political influence. As their incomes increase, so does their political influence.
* Anabel Hernandez is a journalist and writer who has been writing about drug cartels and corruption in Mexico for years. After receiving numerous death threats, she was forced to leave the country and has lived in Europe ever since. In 2019 she was awarded the State Prize for Freedom of Speech.
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