2024-01-24 15:39:00
The use of illegal opioids remains a serious problem in the European Union and causes around three quarters of the more than 6,000 cases of drug-related overdose deaths in 2021. Around one million opioid users are at high risk overdose. Furthermore, the quantity of heroin seized in EU member countries in 2021 more than doubled to 9.5 tonnes, the highest quantity recorded in twenty years.
The value of heroin trafficking is estimated at at least 5.2 billion euros per year. The trafficking and distribution of this drug is among the main activities of several criminal networks operating in the EU.
Almost all the heroin consumed in Europe comes from Afghanistan, where the Taliban introduced a ban on poppy cultivation and opium production in April 2022. As a result, the production of these narcotics in Afghanistan decreased by 95% in 2023.
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Although there does not appear to be a shortage of heroin in Europe currently, this Taliban ban could have an impact in the future, according to Europol. The heroin shortage could give way to the arrival of powerful synthetic opioids or stimulants, such as methamphetamine. This could have major consequences for health and safety in Europe, insists the European police organization. The report also calls for actions by the EU, but also by the Nordic and Baltic countries, to “improve Europe’s preparation” for the arrival of these new narcotics.
Four routes are mainly used for smuggling heroin from Afghanistan to Europe: the Balkans, the South, the Caucasus and the North. Adjustments are also visible regarding these journeys. The number of seizures on the Balkan route appears to be decreasing, due to reinforced customs controls, “real or perceived as such”, in Turkey and Bulgaria, the report points out. The war in Ukraine has also changed routes, as the United Arab Emirates appears to be emerging as a transit point used to conceal the origin and nature of heroin shipments. It is also a hub for money laundering and criminal coordination, Europol said.
“Although we are seeing a decline in opium production in Afghanistan, it is very important to closely monitor the supply chain and market diversification, as criminal networks are known for their flexibility and constant search for new opportunities”, commented Catherine De Bolle, the Belgian head of Europol.
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