Cablegate: Turkey 2005-2006 International Narcotics
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 007239
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR INL, EUR/SE
JUSTICE FOR OIA, AFMLS, AND NDDS
TREASURY FOR FINCEN
DEA FOR OILS AND OFFICE OF DIVERSION CONTROL
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SNAR TU
SUBJECT: TURKEY 2005-2006 INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS
CONTROL STRATEGY REPORT, VOLUME I
REF: STATE 209561
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Summary
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1. (U) Turkey is a major transit route for Southwest
Asian opiates to Europe, and serves as a base for major
narcotics traffickers and brokers. Turkish law
enforcement organizations focus their efforts on
stemming the traffic of drugs and intercepting
precursor chemicals. Turkish law enforcement forces
cooperate closely with European and U.S. agencies.
While most of the heroin trafficked via Turkey is
marketed in Western Europe, an increasing amount of
heroin and opium also is smuggled from Turkey to the
U.S. There is no appreciable cultivation of illicit
narcotics in Turkey other than marijuana grown
primarily for domestic consumption. There is no
diversion from Turkey's licit opium poppy cultivation
and pharmaceutical morphine production program. Turkey
is a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention.
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Status of Country
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2. (U) Turkey is a major transshipment point. Turkey is
also a base of operations for international narcotics
traffickers and associates trafficking in opium,
morphine base, heroin, precursor chemicals and other
drugs. The majority of these opiates originate in
Afghanistan, and are ultimately trafficked to Western
Europe. A smaller but still not insignificant amount of
heroin is trafficked to the U.S. via Turkey. Turkish
law enforcement forces are strongly committed to
disrupting narcotics trafficking. The Turkish National
Police (TNP) remains Turkey's most sophisticated
counternarcotics force, with the Jandarma and Customs
continuing to play a significant role. Turkish
authorities continue to seize large amounts of heroin
and precursor chemicals, such as acetic anhydride. It
is estimated that multi-ton amounts of heroin are
smuggled through Turkey each month. A small amount of
heroin is still being refined in Turkey.
3. (U) Turkey is one of the two traditional licit opium-
growing countries recognized by the USG and the
International Narcotics Control Board. Opium for
pharmaceutical is cultivated and refined in Turkey
under strict domestic controls, and in accordance with
all international treaty obligations. There is no
appreciable illicit drug cultivation in Turkey other
than cannabis grown primarily for domestic consumption.
4. (U) Turkish law enforcement authorities continue to
seize large quantities of synthetic drugs that have
been manufactured in Northern and Eastern European
countries. The majority of the synthetic drug seizures
have occurred as the drugs were being shipped through
Turkey to other countries in the Middle East.
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Country Actions Against Drugs in 2005
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5. (U) Policy Initiatives: The GOT devotes significant
financial and human resources to counternarcotics
activities. Turkey continues to play a key role in
Operation Containment (a DEA regional program to reduce
the flow of Afghan heroin to Western Europe) as well as
in other regional efforts.
6. (U) The Turkish International Academy against Drugs
and Organized Crime (TADOC), established under the
Turkish National Police (TNP), continues to be a key
agency leading the fight against drug abuse in Turkey.
In 2004, TNP increased the number of drug training and
prevention units it previously established in various
provinces, to cover most parts of Turkey. These units
conducted intensive training programs for parents,
teachers and students in these provinces, making a
major contribution to the GOT's drug prevention
efforts.
7. (U) Accomplishments: TADOC organized 44 training
programs for local and regional law enforcement
officers in 2005. A total of 287 foreign officers were
trained at TADOC this year, including officers from the
Balkans, Central Asia, Syria, and Afghanistan. The
training programs focused on drug trafficking,
corruption, counterfeiting, illegal immigration, money
laundering, and demand reduction. TADOC also hosted an
FBI training program on criminal interrogation
techniques for 35 law enforcement officers from the
region. A 2004 UN drug survey indicated that while
there was no major increase in drug abuse in Turkey in
the last couple of years, the use of synthetic drugs is
on the rise. TNP conducted distance training programs
in nine large cities in 2005. TADOC believes that
these seminars, along with the rural TNP units'
training and prevention efforts, made a significant
contribution in limiting the increase of drug abuse in
Turkey.
8. (U) Law Enforcement Efforts: Through 05 December
2005, Turkish law enforcement agencies seized 7760
kilograms of heroin, 409 kilograms of morphine base,
7.6 million dosage units of synthetic drugs, 10,671
kilograms of hashish and 25 kilograms of cocaine. In
addition, the GOT law enforcement authorities have made
more than 12,749 drug-related arrests. (The Jandarma
and Customs have only reported statistics through
October 2005.)
9. (U) Corruption: In December 2005, the General
Assembly's Foreign Affairs Committee adopted a draft
law ratifying the UN Convention Against Corruption.
Transparency International noted that Turkey improved
its fight against corruption this year, moving from
77th to 65th in the transparency ranking of 159
countries. A World Bank business survey prepared this
year also suggested a drop in corruption in Turkey
between 2002 and 2005. There is still no government
agency specifically tasked with the fight against
corruption.
10. (U) Agreements and Treaties: Turkey is a party to
the 1988 UN Drug Convention, the 1971 UN Convention on
Psychotropic Substances, and the 1961 UN Single
Convention, as amended by the 1972 Protocol. Turkey
also is a party to the UN Convention Against
Transnational Organized Crime and its three protocols.
The U.S. and Turkey cooperate in law enforcement
matters under a 1981 treaty on extradition and mutual
assistance in legal matters.
11. (U) Cultivation/Production: Illicit drug
cultivation, primarily cannabis, is minor and has no
impact on the United States. The Turkish Grain Board
strictly controls licit opium poppy cultivation quite
successfully, with no apparent diversion into the
illicit market.
12. (U) Drug Flow/Transit: Turkey remains a major
route, and storage, production and staging area, for
the flow of heroin to Europe. Turkish-based traffickers
and brokers operate in conjunction with narcotics
smugglers, laboratory operators, and money launderers
in and outside Turkey. They finance and control the
smuggling of opiates to and from Turkey. Afghanistan is
the source of most of the opiates reaching Turkey.
Morphine and heroin base are smuggled overland from
Afghanistan and Pakistan via Iran. Opiates and hashish
also are smuggled to Turkey overland from Afghanistan
via Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, and Georgia. Traffickers
in Turkey illegally acquire the heroin precursor
chemical, acetic anhydride, from sources in Western
Europe, the Balkans and Russia. For fiscal year 2004,
2304 liters of acetic anhydride was seized in, or
destined for, Turkey. Some of them reportedly have
interests in heroin laboratories operating near the
Iranian-Turkish border in Iran. Turkish-based
traffickers control much of the heroin marketed to
Western Europe.
13. (U) In 2005, Turkish authorities reported an
increase in synthetic drug seizures throughout Turkey.
Although Turkish law enforcement has not seen a large
increase in synthetic drug manufacturing in Turkey,
Turkish National Police did report one synthetic drug
laboratory seizure in Usak, Turkey in December 2004.
For calendar year 2005, a total of 7.5 million dosage
units of synthetic drugs, predominantly captagon and
Ecstasy, were seized in Turkey.
14. (U) Demand Reduction: While drug abuse remains low
in Turkey compared to other countries, the number of
addicts reportedly is increasing. Although the Turkish
Government is increasingly aware of the need to combat
drug abuse, the agencies responsible for drug awareness
and treatment remain under-funded. As of 2005, seven
Alcohol and Substance Abuse Treatment and Education
Clinics (AMATEM) have been established, which serve as
regional drug treatment centers. Due to lack of funds,
only one of the centers focuses on drug prevention as
well as treatment. The most recent clinic was opened in
Ankara in 2004 and will serve as the countrywide
coordinating center for drug and alcohol treatment and
education. TADOC's Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug
Addiction is increasing its ability to coordinate the
drug prevention effort at a national level. In this
effort, TADOC hired new personnel in 2005 to support
its data gathering, evaluation, and demand reduction
activities. The Health Ministry has not conducted a
drug abuse survey since 1995 due to lack of resources.
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U.S. Policy Initiatives and Programs
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15. (U) Policy Initiatives and Programs: Through fiscal
year 1999, the U.S. Government extended $500,000
annually in assistance. While that program has now
terminated, during 2005-06 the U.S. Government
anticipates spending approximately $60,000 in
previously-obligated funds on counternarcotics
programs.
16. (U) Bilateral Cooperation: DEA reports excellent
cooperation with Turkish officials. Turkish
counternarcotics forces have developed technically,
becoming increasingly professional, in part based on
the training and equipment they received from the U.S.
and other international law enforcement agencies.
17. (U) Road Ahead: U.S. policy remains to strengthen
Turkey's ability to combat narcotics trafficking, money
laundering and financial crimes.
WILSON