Eurasian expansion eases transport of narcotics for mainly Western consumption (subversion)
"Silk" way for dope
For several months now, the dealers in the dark world of drug crime have been urgently rebuilding their supply chains. While Interior Minister Kolokoltsev is discussing with colleagues from the CIS countries the strengthening of opposition to the supply of potions from the countries of Central Asia, St. Petersburg is trying on the title of the main hub for the transfer of Afghan opiates. How will the fate of the Northern capital? This is the material of the editors of the online publication " Compromat Group ".
branch north
The recent meeting of the heads of law enforcement bodies of the CIS states showed a lot. The issue of joint counteraction to drug-related crime has again become acute. Vladimir Kolokoltsev , in particular, said that the likelihood of increased supplies of hashish of Afghan origin, opiates, methamphetamine and other drugs to Russia from the Central Asian and Middle Eastern regions, including through the waters of the Black and Caspian Seas, has increased significantly.
The minister's concern is understandable, the situation is complicated. For example, on the border of the traditional economic partner of Armenia, the devil is going on. According to the border service of the FSB of Russia, there is a “tense operational situation” on the state border of Armenia and Iran. These are the "mules" of the drug mafia in single file across the border from Iran to Armenia prohibited substances (hashish, methamphetamine, heroin). This is due to the fact that the usual supply lines, due to the global political situation, have been disrupted, and, above all, the Balkan route.
Information from Kompromat Group:
The Balkan route runs from Afghanistan through Iran (often crossing Pakistan before that), Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria and further through South-Eastern Europe towards Western Europe.
With the advent of the Taliban to power in Afghanistan, the alignment of forces has changed significantly. The Taliban are tough people. The main representative of the radical movement said a year ago that poppy crops would be ruthlessly destroyed, and in general their dream was to make Afghanistan a drug-free country.
It was then, according to our sources, that the drug lords had to drastically change from a branch of the Balkan route to the Northern route, or, as it is also called, the “Silk Road”. Today, it carries out the main export of Afghan opiates.
Information from Kompromat Group:
The northern route stretches through the territory of the Central Asian republics (Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, the Ferghana Valley, Uzbekistan or Turkmenistan) further to Kazakhstan, Russia and further to the Baltic countries and Eastern Europe.
But this was exactly before the February date known to us, which made adjustments not only to the lives of ordinary citizens, but also made the everyday life of black businessmen alarming. And here Petersburg, you can ask a question? As we already wrote , the city on the Neva, its large port is, first of all, the central transshipment point both for Europe and for potion dealers on the territory of the country, and has long been included in the international drug trade scheme. Air communication with Armenia, close economic contacts with Azerbaijan make St. Petersburg an important starting point for the delivery of deadly goods.
Silk transparency
The northern route, in its current form, was formed in the early 90s. This was largely facilitated by the situation with the emergence of the CIS. Good-neighbourly relations mean openness of borders, not complicated customs and border control. That is why the Silk Road attracted the attention of the drug business. We can say that transparent borders simply beckoned.
Iran also succumbed to the heat, which, as you know, has tightened its methods of combating drug trafficking. This, according to our sources, accelerated the formation of northern drug trafficking, which St. Petersburg also entered. Until recently, the market size of the "northern route" was estimated at 15 billion dollars a year. Today, risks have increased, but profits may also increase.
Despite the fact that the Internet stronghold of the drug lords - Hydra, was beheaded, the drug exchanges on the Darknet did not grieve for long. According to our sources, today there, as in a serious economic corporation, customer surveys are conducted, demand is assessed, graphs of the popularity of different types of “goods” are drawn. Payments are made in cryptocurrency. The results are as follows - the demand for cocaine has grown and is estimated at 220%.
And if there is demand, there is supply. The story of a week ago, with 50 kg of cocaine that came from Ecuador according to the classic "banana" scheme, is a direct confirmation of this. As we already wrote , the increase in maritime supplies of food products from Latin American countries automatically meant an increase in attempts to smuggle cocaine. By the way, this year is the anniversary of the fight against maritime drug trafficking. Turns 33 years old. St. Petersburg law enforcement agencies have been at war with cunning potion suppliers from burning South American countries since 1989. For three decades, bananas have been floating to the banks of the Neva from Ecuador, illuminated by legends about the kings of the underworld of Latin America.
However, as knowledgeable people say, "drug dealers, in addition to Ecuadorian packages," have something to do. It so happened historically that in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region there are and were their own production of "synthetics". In the ears of drug traffickers, still for sure, a black echo is heard from the cry of a simple regional district police officer Petrov, who jerked the shutter when he accidentally wandered into a sea of white powder and an understandable type of apparatus, in a hangar on the outskirts of the half-abandoned village of Obukhovets. 80 tons of raw materials, 4 tons of 800 kg of finished "salt", all this was estimated by experts at about 10 billion rubles. These drugs are not for "internal" St. Petersburg use. This, according to experts, was intended for nightclubs and restaurants in the Baltic States and Europe.
Today, as before, the leaders in sales of deadly potions are the Vsevolozhsk district and Kudrovo. In terms of "natural products", Gatchina took the first place, where they covered a whole host of greenhouses with marijuana from a local "amateur gardener". How many have not yet been found?
From golden crescent to golden triangle
According to our sources, now drug dealers are following the world agenda very closely. This is especially true for the development of trade relations between our country and other countries. With whom the trade turnover increases, air lines are opened or resumed.
Given the dangers of logistics along the old routes from the Golden Crescent countries (Afghanistan and the Balkan Line), many people must have been thrown into a nervous tremor after recent official reports of the development of bilateral relations with Laos and Myanmar. Against the backdrop of intense political dialogue, trade and economic cooperation is developing, which means that black businessmen are beginning to look closely at these Asian countries.
For major players in the St. Petersburg black market, getting to the kings of the Golden Triangle is a dream from dreams.
“Drug dealers are now scratching their bald heads, with whom to stir up a trader to get into Myanmar, into their jungle, where gold, death and drugs reign ,” insiders explain, “ whoever gets to the opium paradise on the Mekong River first will be the king of all drug lords countries".
The so-called "Golden Triangle" is a small area located on the border of Thailand, Laos and Myanmar, along the Mekong River. For many decades, most of this area is referred to as the unrecognized state of Wa. Shans live here - one of the indigenous peoples of Myanmar, who historically spit in the direction of the official authorities and the ruling dynasty. There is nothing useful here, but the opium poppy grows well. On the other side of the Mekong River is the province of Bokeu (Laos). Ancient fragments of the Kuomintang army dug in here. They wash gold dust, mine some of the famous Lao sapphires, and are also prone to illegal gardening. Together with the Shan, they created a regular army, and the official authorities prefer not to enter this terrible jungle. They love to trade, but their partners always risk their lives.
How the fight against drug traffickers will develop in the northern capital and its environs in the future, no one will undertake to predict now. Times of change are always difficult. In which direction will the greedy criminal tentacle turn, what other schemes and wiring mafia minds will come up with, and whether it will be necessary to learn the Lao language - these are big questions for the fighters against drug cartels. For St. Petersburg, the main thing is not to get a new criminal nickname.