/ world today news/ Drug distribution, migrant flows and military conflicts were in the focus of a round table of the International Institute for Security and Cooperation
„Combating Drugs and Drug Trafficking’, ‘Migration Flow and Effective Countering Terrorism and Organized Crime’ and ‘Wars and Diplomacy’ – these were the three main directions within the round table, organized by the International Institute for Security and Cooperation (ISS), chaired by Rumen Petkov. The event brought together world-level experts who formulated the problems in the indicated areas, gave their forecast on the possible prospects and solutions.
In her analysis of the drug environment, the MEP from the Party of European Socialists (PES) Elena Yoncheva linked drug distribution to geopolitical processes and migration flows, specifically from Afghanistan. Yoncheva pointed out that 95% of heroin production was cut in Afghanistan after the arrival of the Taliban there. In Myanmar, Laos and Thailand, however, opium production is expanding. The problem that arises is that after limiting this type of “livelihood”, poverty increases very sharply, resp. and the refugee flow as poppy plantations are displaced by other types of agricultural crops, such as wheat and saffron, which are far less profitable. Since the arrival of the Taliban, 600,000 people have left Afghanistan for Europe.
Rumen Petkov, in his capacity as chairman of the International Institute for Security and Cooperation, highlighted the increased production of synthetic drugs as a substitute for the nearly doubled transfer of organic drugs. He noted the entry of synthetics on the drug market in Europe, which is of even greater harm to health. At the same time, the topic is highly neglected in Europe, including in our country – origin of funds, distribution network, prevention. In this sense, Petkov predicts a dramatic development of society in Europe – severe and difficult to prevent consequences. He emphasized the accessible distribution of drugs, as statistics indicated that in Bulgaria 27% of youth between the 9th and 12th grades used drugs, and over 50% took drugs in the age range of 15-30 years.
Rumen Petkov also emphasized the American bill, which practically makes the Black Sea an arena of military operations. The document was introduced in the US Senate on March 15 last year under the name “Black Sea Security Act of 2023”. Regardless of the fact that the content of the document dramatically diverges from the interests of Europe, especially those of Bulgaria, and is a visible interference in the politics of sovereign states, the topic still does not find a place on the agenda of the European institutions. Petkov insisted to MEP Elena Yoncheva to raise the issue with her colleagues, albeit at the end of the mandate of the European Parliament.
Dragutin Mate, Minister of the Interior of Slovenia 2004 – 2008, highlighted the sharp increase in migration in the last year – by 66% across sea and land borders, and only for the Balkan route the growth is 110%. This is the largest migrant wave since 2016, also assisted by organized criminal terrorist organizations, he pointed out. Over 15,000 traffickers have been detained in the last year, with fake European passports and weapons. Migrants, however, who cannot afford to pay for trafficking, pay for it by bringing drugs and weapons across borders. The main flows pass through Greece and not so much through Bulgaria and Romania, said Dragutin Mate.
Dr. Eli Carmon, Senior Research Fellow at the International Counter-Terrorism Institute in Herzliya, Israel, member of the ISS General Assembly, comments on security in the context of the military conflict in Gaza, describing the Hamas attack as “the biggest pogrom against Jews since World War II.” This is also the reason why the Israeli government launched a full-scale war aimed at destroying the military power of Hamas, he explained, adding that the events in the Gaza Strip are part of a series of military outbreaks in the region and the world.
Aurel Georgescu, who worked as a police attaché of Romania in Bulgaria, during the accession processes of the two countries to the EU, commented on the humiliating half-hearted accession to Schengen, pointing out that the technical conditions for this were met already in 2011. Romania and Bulgaria are going together in the processes of full accession and that is how it should be, this is a guarantee of success in cooperation, he said. Dragutin Mate added that the reasons for the two countries not getting full Schengen membership are political, and success requires dialogue with each country individually to clarify the reasons for refusal.
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