The country considered to be the world’s “champion” in synthetic drugs is Mexico, according to a senior Mexican security official.
The admission came as US officials attending the meeting in Mexico yesterday called again for the fight against powerful Mexican cartels to be stepped up.
“Mexico was the champion country in the production of methamphetamines, and now fentanyl,” admitted the head of the Mexican Criminal Investigation Service, Felipe de Jesus Gayo.
Mexico ‘champion’ of synthetic drug production, official says pic.twitter.com/B3ZMwf2j2V
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Trafficking in synthetic drugs brings “the greatest wealth and the most power” to the cartels, he added.
According to the US Federal Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), Mexican cartels process precursor chemicals they import from China and then export to the North American market fentanyl, a drug blamed for tens of thousands of overdose deaths.
Mexico ‘champion’ of synthetic drug production, official says
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Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has promised to work with the US to attack the root of the problem, but has at times downplayed the scale of production in Mexico.
“We are in the midst of a global crisis due to illegal synthetic drugs,” said Chris Lundberg, deputy director of the US Bureau of International Narcotics, INL.
The US is making intensive efforts to reduce drug demand, he assured his Mexican counterparts.
“But the US is not the only country at risk, and we need additional support to combat the global supply of drugs,” he added, stressing that he understands that “criminal organizations are adapting quickly and we need a more flexible and comprehensive approach.”
Source: RES
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