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Russia wants Active NATO in Fight on Afghan Drugs

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Russia is calling on NATO for enhanced anti-drug efforts between it and the post-Soviet security alliance, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday.

Russia is calling on NATO for enhanced anti-drug efforts between it and the post-Soviet security alliance, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday.

Lavrov was referring to the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), which unites Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, which are transit countries for illicit drug trafficking between Afghanistan and Europe.

“It is important for us: either we are equal partners, who respect mutual interests, or the alliance is ready for cooperation only when it benefits from it, for example, in cases of transit,” Lavrov said at the Third Paris Pact Initiative Ministerial Conference on Drug Trafficking Routes from Afghanistan held in Vienna.

Russia has been speaking out for the “necessity of such cooperation for years but there has yet been no clear response,” the minister added. He said NATO has been ignoring the CSTO's appeals for joint efforts for nearly five years, which he said did not help improve bilateral cooperation.

“We are open to cooperation in preventing drug trafficking with all countries,” Lavrov added.

Russia, which is the main conduit of drugs originating in Afghanistan, holds the first place worldwide for the number of heroin addicts per capita. Over 90 percent of drug addicts in the country use heroin.

According to UN data, there are 2.5 million drug addicts and over 5.1 million drug users in the country. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev recently ordered the preparation of a draft document in April that introduces medical treatment as an alternative to legal measures against drug addicts.

 

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