The region could emerge as a hub for synthetic opioids like fentanyl. Asia Pacific counter-narcotics police met in Myanmar’s capital Naypyitaw on Wednesday to negotiate a new strategy to strangle the supply of chemicals used in synthetic drug production. The Golden Triangle centred on Myanmar’s conflict-ridden north has exported illicit drugs to the world for decades. While opium cultivation and heroin trafficking has slumped in recent years, synthetic drug manufacturing - especially methamphetamine - has soared. UNODC regional representative Jeremy Douglas said the boom was “like nothing we have ever seen before, and it has required a matching surge in precursor chemicals.” Seizures of methamphetamine sourced from the region have leapt since 2016, with consignments of the highly addictive drug intercepted in South Korea and New Zealand and most countries in between. The price of methamphetamine - both in crystal and pill form - has fallen in many countries … [Read more...] about Golden Triangle’s drug production expands, diversifies amid opioid concerns
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U.S. food safety agency asserts Vietnamese tra fish quality compatibility
U.S. food safety agency asserts Vietnamese tra fish quality compatibilityBy Trung Chanh Workers check the weight of tra fish fillets at a Vietnamese seafood producer – PHOTO: TRUNG CHANH CAN THO – The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) under the United States Department of Agriculture has proposed the Office of the Federal Register amend the Siluriformes fish inspection regulations to list Vietnam as a country eligible to export Siluriformes fish and fish products to the United States. Vietnamese catfish, under the Siluriformes order, mainly tra fish (Pangasius), will be qualified to be shipped to the United States if the proposal is approved. The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers told The Saigon Times today, September 17, that after receiving the proposal from the FSIS, the Federal Register posted a draft, seeking feedback for the request. The FSIS proposed this action because the agency had reviewed Vietnam’s laws, regulations … [Read more...] about U.S. food safety agency asserts Vietnamese tra fish quality compatibility
Philippines drug war deaths climb to 1,800; U.S. ‘deeply concerned’
The Philippines has recorded about 1,800 drug-related killings since President Rodrigo Duterte took office seven weeks ago and launched a war on narcotics, far higher than previously believed, according to police figures. Relatives of slain people cover their faces as they attend a Senate hearing investigating drug-related killings at the Senate headquarters in Pasay city, metro Manila, Philippines August 22, 2016. Philippine National Police Chief Ronald Dela Rosa told a Senate committee on Monday that 712 drug traffickers and users had been killed in police operations since July 1. Police were also investigating 1,067 other drug-related killings, Dela Rosa said, without giving details. On Sunday, Duterte railed against the United Nations for criticizing the wave of deaths. The United States, a close ally of the Philippines, said it was "deeply … [Read more...] about Philippines drug war deaths climb to 1,800; U.S. ‘deeply concerned’
Venezuela’s Cabello: defector after money, can’t prove drug claims
Venezuelan Socialist Party heavyweight Diosdado Cabello on Wednesday said a defector reportedly accusing him of running a drug ring was merely chasing money and had no proof. Spanish newspaper ABC and Miami-based El Nuevo Herald have reported Cabello's former security chief Leamsy Salazar had fled and was collaborating with U.S. authorities investigating allegations of Venezuelan officials' involvement with drug trafficking. Cabello, an influential and pugnacious former military man who heads the National Assembly and is the ruling party's No. 2, said the episode was part of a broader "imperialist" plan to bring down Venezuela's socialist government. "This is part of the infamy ... Salazar decided to leave Venezuela to hand over his dignity to North American imperialism," Cabello told Colombia's BLU Radio. "What saddens us most is that someone can have such little ethical convictions as to sell himself for money. But he's going to have problems in the United States when he can't … [Read more...] about Venezuela’s Cabello: defector after money, can’t prove drug claims
U.S. anti-drug efforts in W.Africa may expand to protect wildlife
WASHINGTON, Aug 5 - The United States hopes to expand a two-year-old effort against organized crime in West Africa to include wildlife trafficking and money laundering - activities that it says exploits some of the same networks long used for drug trafficking. William Brownfield, the Assistant U.S. Secretary for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, said on Tuesday that his office is ready to take "the next step" in its anti-drug efforts when U.S. officials convene a high-level meeting later this week with 15 west African countries. "The same organizations that move drugs and people and firearms and doing basic smuggling are moving rhino horn and elephant tusk and other products that come from illicit wildlife trafficking," Brownfield said, speaking on the sidelines of a major African summit taking place in Washington. While there might not be a "complete overlap," criminals are sharing their networks, including corrupted customs, immigration and financial regulatory … [Read more...] about U.S. anti-drug efforts in W.Africa may expand to protect wildlife