Analysis | Why Israel needs to focus on Syria’s drug trafficking – By Seth J. Frantzman (Jerusalem Post) / July 8, 2023
The war on synthetic drug trafficking provides an opportunity for Israel to collaborate with surrounding countries.
Israel is joining a growing list of countries that are concerned about the Syrian regime’s drug production and trafficking.
A statement by Foreign Minister Eli Cohen called for a regional coalition to halt the expansion of Syria’s drug production and trafficking, at an international conference on drug trafficking on Friday. This is important because it joins the US, Jordan and other countries in putting a spotlight on how opioids, such as captagon, have harmed the region. This also marks an important milestone for the US because US Secretary of State Antony Blinken pushed for this recent Ministerial meeting to launch a Global Coalition to address Synthetic Drug Threats.
This is also a unique opportunity for regional integration on policies related to confronting drug smuggling. This scourge harms all the countries in the region and can destabilize countries. Iran, for instance, is linked to militant and militia groups that destabilize Syria and Iraq.
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