US Withdrawal From Afghanistan Shows Failure Of US Anti-Drug Initiatives- Russian Diplomat

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd August, 2021) The US forces' withdrawal from Afghanistan shows that Washington's initiatives to combat drugs in fact failed, the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department for New Challenges and Threats chief, Vladimir Tarabrin, said in an interview with Sputnik.

"Leaving Afghanistan, the Americans state that their anti-drug initiatives in fact failed," Tarabrin said.

Afghanistan accounts for around 84% of the global opiate production, according to the Russian diplomat. In addition, in recent years, the country became a "major methamphetamine laboratory," the official noted.

"It is noteworthy that peak indicators in the Afghan drug industry coincided with the presence of the Americans and their NATO allies on the territory of the country," Tarabrin said.

According to different estimates, the volume of illegal opiate production surged from 17 to 40 times compared to 2001 when the US troops entered Afghanistan, the Russian diplomat recalled.

"A stable drug market is formed in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, a smoothly running drug business is operating regardless of presence of foreign troops," Tarabrin concluded.