Is the Afghan Air Force Involved In The Drug Trade?

Afghan Air Force Probed in Drug Running -- Wall Street Journal

KABUL—The U.S. is investigating allegations that some officials in the Afghan Air Force, which was established largely with American funds, have been using aircraft to ferry narcotics and illegal weapons around the country, American officials told The Wall Street Journal.

Two probes of the Afghan Air Force, or AAF, are under way—one led by the U.S. military coalition and another by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, officials said.

"The nature of the allegations is fairly dramatic and indicated that [AAF officials] were transporting drugs on aircraft and transported weapons not owned by the government of Afghanistan for the use of private groups," said U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Daniel Bolger, commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Training Mission-Afghanistan, the command that is establishing and financing Afghan security forces, including the AAF.

Read more ....

More News On The Involvement Of The Afghan Air Force In The Country's Drug Trade

Afghan Air Force: Flying Drug Mules That Fuel Civil War -- Danger Room
Afghan Air Force Suspected of Drug Running: Report -- ABC News
Report: US investigating Afghan Air Force for alleged drug running -- FOX News/Wall Street Journal
U.S. probes allegations Afghan Air Force involved in drug running -- Reuters
U.S. probes Afghan Air Force drug allegations -- CNN
US Investigates Afghan Air Force for Drug Trafficking -- Voice of America
US Suspects Afghan Air Force of Drug Running -- Newser

My Comment: Drugs, fraud, corruption, etc .... and U.S. officials are now finally realizing that this is impacting their overall strategy in Afghanistan.

On a side note .... I guess this project is now dead.

Interview: Afghan War On Narcotics

Afghan farmers in some provinces have continued to cultivate poppy fields [EPA]

From Al Jazeera:

In her tenure as the the country director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime in Afghanistan, Christina Oguz, has had to fight a multi-faceted battle.

She says her task is becoming more challenging as ties between the insurgency and drug-traffickers appear to strengthen and Afghanistan teeters on the edge of becoming a narco-state.

Though 2008 saw a drop in poppy cultivation for the first time, Oguz says real dangers remain.

Speaking to Al Jazeera just before concluding her term in Afghanistan, Oguz discussed her concerns about the justice sector, the lack of trained judges, what she says is an ineffective police force and the absence of the fundamental rights of all citizens.

Read more ....

My Comment: A blunt interview on the enormous job that needs to be done in Afghanistan, and the complete lack of resources to combat the lawlessness and the drug industry that exists in the country.

Drugs And The Taliban In Afghanistan

(Photo from the BBC)

UN: Taliban Could Clear $500M From 2008 Drug Trade
-- The AP

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Taliban and other warlords could clear almost half a billion dollars from Afghanistan's opium trade this year — money that will help finance insurgent attacks, the U.N.'s drug czar said.

Antonio Maria Costa, head of the U.N.'s Office on Drugs and Crime, said the Taliban also appears to be stockpiling the drug to manipulate its price, after several years in which production surpassed world demand.

Afghanistan produces over 90 percent of the world's opium, the raw ingredient for making heroin.

"By year end, warlords, drug lords and insurgents will have extracted almost half a billion dollars of tax revenue from drug farming, production and trafficking," Costa said in a summary of the U.N.'s annual Afghanistan opium survey, published Thursday.

Read more ....

More News On The Opium Trade In Afghanistan

Opium poppy harvest declines 6% in Afghanistan -- L.A. Times
Sharp drop in Afghan poppy crop -- BBC
U.N. Reports That Taliban Is Stockpiling Opium -- New York Times
NATO countries split on help for Afghan drug war: top UN official -- AFP
Taliban seen earning up to 304 mln pounds from opium -- International Herald Tribune
The Taliban Is a Drug Cartel and Should Be Attacked as Such -- U.S. News And World Report (opinion)

Afghanistan's Drug Trade -- Collateral Damage On It's Civilians And How It Is Affecting Other Neighboring Countries

From U.S. News And World Report:

KHOSAN—With widespread unemployment in this Afghan border town has come a growing epidemic of drug abuse. Khosan, 10 miles from Iran, is a transit point for smugglers, and residents here say that their town is awash in hashish and opium that is available in nearly every market shop. Two bean-size rocks of the newest and most popular drug here, crystal opium, sell for $2.

Read more ....

News From Other Sources:
NATO Battles Poppy Cultivation, Resource Challenges in Afghanistan -- U.S. Dept. Defense
NATO Commander Says Afghan Illegal Drug Trade Aids Taliban -- America.gov
NATO troops wipe out Afghan poppy fields -- United Press International
NATO Urged To Do More For Afghan Drugs Problem -- Afghanistan Conflict Monitor
How and when did Afghanistan Turn into a Drug Centre? -- Voices From Russia

My Comment: A vicious cycle that goes on and on and on. The people who run the government, the administers, the Taliban who are fighting against this government, the Police, the regional warlords, the criminals, the farmers .... everyone .... is involved in this trade. There is just too much money.

The only group that has not gotten involved in the drug trade are Nato forces, in particular U.S., Canadian, and U.K. troops, as well as the many aid agencies. At least I have always hoped that this was the case .... but unfortunately others are now strongly disagreeing. More here.