TEHRAN – Iraj Kakavand, the anti-narcotics police chief, has announced the country’s opposition to the legalization and decriminalization of drugs.

One of the most important challenges of the present era is the rising production and smuggling of new drugs and psychotropic substances, Kakavand said at the BRICS Anti-Drug Working Group meeting in Moscow on May 21.

The meeting was attended by the heads and employees of the relevant BRICS authorities and their diplomatic missions in Russia.

These drugs pose serious threats to the health of the society, especially the youth, and weaken the economic, social, and political stability and development of the member countries, he added.

Undoubtedly, narcotics are one of the deadliest challenges that the world is facing which also fuels many terrorist activities around the world.

Guided by religious values,  responsibility and philanthropy, and adherence to international treaties and conventions, Iran has taken effective measures to deal with narcotics by adopting a balanced strategy in the fight against illicit drugs, the official noted.

"In addition to our country, other countries on the route and destination have also benefited from these actions," Kakavans stated.

Certainly, some 4,000 martyrs and more than 12,000 veterans prove Iran has paid the costs in the battle against drugs.

It is important that all countries, away from their political tendencies, adopt an operational view, boost their cooperation, and play their role in the targeted fight against drug trafficking.

Therefore, considering the crucial and influential role of regional and international organizations in setting and implementing programs as well as coordinating the counter-narcotics forces of countries, it is expected that these institutions ceaselessly provide financial and equipment support for the countries at the front lines of the fight against drugs.

Referring to the complexities of drug trafficking at the international level and the fact that traffickers exploit legal trade channels and commercial shipments, Kakavand stressed the importance of implementing strategies to identify key actors in drug trafficking at the international level and sharing the information with the anti-narcotics police of the involved countries.

The official also announced the seizure of more than 662 tons of narcotics in 2023 and the first 4 months of 2024 in Iran which mainly targeted countries other than Iran.

“It confirms that despite the existing reports regarding the cessation and decrease in opium cultivation and production in Afghanistan, there has been no noticeable reduction in drug smuggling which has to concern not only Iran and Afghanistan’s neighboring countries but also the countries present in the meeting,” he added.

Kakavand also offered Iran’s proposals and elaborated on the country's effective implementation of the anti-narcotics program including compilation and implementation of the comprehensive document on treatment and harm reduction; the expansion of treatment centers both quantitatively and qualitatively, the maximum use of the private sector and non-governmental organizations (7,200 centers), employing diverse treatment methods including pharmaceuticals and psychological and social interventions.

BRICS anti-drug meeting

Police Lieutenant General Ivan Gorbunov, who heads the Main Directorate for Drug Control of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, delivered a welcome address at the opening ceremony. In his remarks, he emphasized the need to coordinate international cooperation to effectively combat drug trafficking, which has become a global problem of our times.

BRICS officials and representatives of the Russian Foreign Ministry, the Russian Federal Security Service, the Russian Federal Customs Service, and the Russian Federal Financial Monitoring Service who attended the event also noted the importance of developing cooperation in the BRICS format in their speeches.

During the event, which was held in person for the first time since 2017, the participants exchanged information about key trends with drugs in their countries and discussed promising areas of methodological and practical interaction. The expansion of BRICS has made it possible to broaden the dialogue, include interesting aspects of anti-drug efforts, and also discuss opportunities to develop law enforcement potential and contacts between the relevant authorities.

The meeting participants considered proposals from the Russian side on the further conceptual development of the BRICS Anti-Drug Group and the final joint communique of the meeting, which is titled ‘BRICS Cooperation in Combating Illicit Drug Trafficking, Including the Capacity-building of Drug Law Enforcement Agencies to Counter Challenges and Threats’.

The meeting took place in a friendly, constructive atmosphere and helped to reach mutual understanding on key agenda items.

MT/MG