Despite previous efforts by the US to reduce Afghan dependence on the opium trade, opium production and exports are soaring once again in Afghanistan. This is bad news in and of itself, but the worst aspect is that it enriches Taliban Jihadis… “The Taliban’s involvement with the narcotics trade has increased steadily over time,” Colin […]
Despite a US-led multi-billion dollar, multi-year counter-opium campaign in Afghanistan, the opium trade made a dramatic comeback in 2013 and is once again funding Taliban jihadi operations, setting the stage for a Taliban comeback as the US reduces its military presence. “…several areas once declared poppy-free by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime […]
