@2086 Illicit drugs
Afghanistan
world's largest producer of opium; cultivation of opium
poppy reached unprecedented level of 206,700 hectares in 2004;
counterdrug efforts largely unsuccessful; potential opium production
of 4,950 metric tons; potential heroin production of 582 metric tons
if all opium was processed; source of hashish; many
narcotics-processing labs throughout the country; drug trade source
of instability and some antigovernment groups profit from the trade;
80-90% of the heroin consumed in Europe comes from Afghan opium;
vulnerable to narcotics money laundering through informal financial
networks
Albania
increasingly active transshipment point for Southwest Asian
opiates, hashish, and cannabis transiting the Balkan route and - to
a far lesser extent - cocaine from South America destined for
Western Europe; limited opium and growing cannabis production;
ethnic Albanian narcotrafficking organizations active and expanding
in Europe; vulnerable to money laundering associated with regional
trafficking in narcotics, arms, contraband, and illegal aliens
Angola
used as a transshipment point for cocaine destined for
Western Europe and other African states
Anguilla
transshipment point for South American narcotics destined
for the US and Europe
Antigua and Barbuda
considered a minor transshipment point for
narcotics bound for the US and Europe; more significant as an
offshore financial center
Argentina
used as a transshipment country for cocaine headed for
Europe and the US; some money-laundering activity, especially in the
Tri-Border Area; domestic consumption of drugs in urban centers is
increasing
Armenia
illicit cultivation of small amount of cannabis for domestic
consumption; used as a transit point for illicit drugs - mostly
opium and hashish - moving from Southwest Asia to Russia and to a
lesser extent the rest of Europe
Aruba
transit point for US- and Europe-bound narcotics with some
accompanying money-laundering activity
Australia
Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit
opiate products; government maintains strict controls over areas of
opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate