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Tajikistan sees no drop in drug smuggling from Afghanistan
Tajikistan’s Presidential Drug Control Agency (DCA) says it has not registered any decline in the volume of drug trafficking from neighboring Afghanistan.
Referring to a recent UN Office on Drugs and Crime report, which stated opium cultivation and production had dropped by 95%, a DCA official Mukbilsho Muyassar told the press that opioids are still flowing into Tajikistan.
“According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, opium poppy cultivation and opium production in Afghanistan has decreased by 95%, yet opioids, such as heroin and opium, as well as Afghan-made methamphetamine, are still flowing into Tajikistan, with the reason behind this being that Afghan drug manufacturers generate greater profits from methamphetamine production,” he said.
Russia’s TASS news agency reported that according to recent reports by the DCA, clandestine synthetic drug labs have started to emerge in Afghanistan to produce these drugs, which are then smuggled into Tajikistan and later transported to other countries.
The DCA stated that more than 2.5 tons of illicit substances were seized from circulation in regions of Tajikistan bordering on Afghanistan in 2023, accounting for over half of all drugs seized in the Central Asian country last year.
Muyassar also said Tajikistan has received no information on any counter-narcotics efforts being implemented by Afghan authorities.
Last December, Atageldi Yazlyyev, director of the Central Asian Regional Information and Coordination Center for Combating Illicit Trafficking of Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances and their Precursors (CARICC), also said that despite analysts’ estimates of poppy cultivation in Afghanistan plummeting, the center’s statistics indicated an increase in opium trafficking. He attributed this to the need to dispose of reserves from previous years’ harvests.
The Islamic Emirate has not yet responded to this claim by Tajikistan, but it has repeatedly stated that it has taken serious steps to stop the cultivation and production of narcotics.
In April 2022, the Islamic Emirate banned the cultivation of poppy across the country, promising to prosecute violators under Sharia law. A ban was also imposed on “the use, transportation, trade, export and import of all types of narcotic drugs.”
Pakistan’s Ambassador to Afghanistan, Ubaid-ur-Rehman Nizamani, has urged the Afghan authorities to take concrete action against militant threats that Islamabad says originate from Afghan soil.
Speaking at an event at the Pakistan Embassy in Kabul marking the first anniversary of Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos against India, Nizamani reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to maintaining “brotherly ties” with Afghanistan.
The ambassador also highlighted Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts in reducing tensions between Iran and the United States, saying Islamabad’s initiatives reflected its commitment to regional and global peace.
During the ceremony, Nizamani reaffirmed Pakistan’s determination to defend itself against any aggression.
“Pakistan’s desire for peace must never be mistaken for weakness,” the ambassador said, calling for heightened vigilance against regional threats.
Pakistani officials have consistently claimed that militants use Afghan soil to attack Pakistan. The Islamic Emirate, however, has denied this claim and said that Afghanistan is not responsible for Pakistan’s security failures.
The Ministry of Mines and Petroleum of Afghanistan has signed a five-year contract for the extraction of gold at a mine in Qala-e-Zal district of Kunduz province, with an investment valued at more than $20 million.
According to the ministry, the agreement was signed on Sunday by Hedayatullah Badri, Afghanistan’s Minister of Mines and Petroleum, in the presence of the ambassadors of Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan.
The project covers an area of approximately 5.97 square kilometers and is expected to attract an investment of $20.24 million.
Under the terms of the agreement, the company responsible for the project has pledged to pay a 30 percent royalty to the Afghan government and allocate $200,000 toward social development and public service initiatives in the area.
Officials said the project is also expected to generate employment opportunities for around 100 people through both direct and indirect jobs.
The ministry described the agreement as part of ongoing efforts to attract domestic and foreign investment into Afghanistan’s mining sector, which authorities view as a key driver of economic growth and regional cooperation.
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Afghan officials join ICESCO meeting, discuss preservation of Islamic manuscripts
Participants underscored the importance of safeguarding these documents, noting that the focus on Mali reflects the manuscripts’ unique cultural and historical value.
Officials from the Ministry of Information and Culture participated in an online scientific meeting organised by the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), focused on the preservation of Islamic manuscripts.
Obaidullah Hanif, Director of the National Archive, and Mohammad Shafiq Ahmadzai, Head of Foreign Relations and Cultural Attachés at the ministry, joined the session held by ICESCO’s Centre for Calligraphy and Manuscripts under the theme “Islamic Manuscripts in the World.”
The meeting examined the condition of Islamic manuscripts in Mali and discussed strategies for their preservation and protection as part of global cultural heritage.
ICESCO representatives highlighted that Mali’s extensive collection of hundreds of thousands of historical manuscripts represents one of the most significant repositories of Islamic civilisation and intellectual history in West Africa.
Participants underscored the importance of safeguarding these documents, noting that the focus on Mali reflects the manuscripts’ unique cultural and historical value.
ICESCO is an intergovernmental organization specializing in the fields of education, science and culture.
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