U.S. Government Reports
2009 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR)
Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs
February 27, 2009
Uzbekistan
I. Summary
Uzbekistan is primarily a transit country for opiates originating in Afghanistan. Well-established trade routes facilitate the transit of these narcotics to Russia and Europe. There is a growing market for a variety of intravenously administered narcotics and consequently a growing problem with drug addiction and the spread of HIV/AIDS. Seizure data indicates that the smuggling of highly regulated prescription medications is becoming more prevalent, and cannabis cultivation is increasing. The Government of Uzbekistan (GOU) has taken some independent steps to combat the narcotics trade but still relies heavily on multilateral and bilateral financial and technical resources. Law enforcement officers seized approximately 1,704 kilograms of illegal narcotics in the first six months of 2008 (heroin accounted for 46 percent of seizures). Authorities also seized 118,940 psychotropic pills, mostly prescription medicines. Uzbekistan is a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention.
II. Status of Country
While there is no significant drug production in Uzbekistan, several transshipment routes for opium, heroin, and hashish originate in Afghanistan and cross Uzbekistan for destinations in Russia and Europe. Seizures for the first half of 2008 increased by 54 percent compared to the same time period in 2007, according to official statistics. The GOU attributes the rise in seizures to increased narcotics production in Afghanistan and more effective counternarcotics operations by Uzbek law enforcement agencies. Precursor chemicals have, in the past, traveled the same transshipment routes in reverse on their way to laboratories in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Export of precursor chemicals, including acetic anhydride, has been controlled in Uzbekistan since 2000. In April 2008 Uzbek authorities interdicted 1.6 tons of acetic anhydride on a train that had entered Uzbekistan and was bound for Afghanistan. This was the first reported seizure of precursor chemicals since 2001 and occurred as part of the UNODC's "Operation Tarcet." Uzbek officials also reported seizing 320 liters of contraband sulphuric acid bound for Tajikistan. According to official statistics, no chemicals that can be used in the manufacture of narcotics were legally exported to Afghanistan. Effective government eradication programs have eliminated nearly all the illicit production of opium poppies in Uzbekistan.
III. Country Actions against Drugs in 2008
Policy Initiatives. The United States and Uzbekistan continued limited counternarcotics cooperation in 2008 under the 2001 U.S.-Uzbekistan Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement Agreement and its amendments. These agreements provide for U.S. assistance to Uzbekistan, and are typically amended in the years following their first negotiation to increase assistance levels to ongoing programs, or to agree to begin new assistance programs. The agreements have established the framework to support projects designed to enhance the capability of Uzbek law enforcement agencies in their efforts to fight narcotics trafficking and organized crime. No new amendments have been signed since 2004. A bilateral Law Enforcement and Security Assistance Working Group met in November 2007 to discuss mutual interests in border security and counter-narcotics cooperation, which contributed to restored dialogue between the U.S. and Uzbekistan on these issues. The Uzbek criminal justice system continues to suffer from a lack of modernization and reform, mainly judicial and procedural reform, and standards remain below international norms. The Uzbek criminal justice system is largely inherited from the Soviet Union. The Executive Branch and Prosecutor General's Office are powerful entities, and the judiciary is not independent. The outcomes of court cases are usually predetermined, and conviction rates approach 100 percent. Prosecutions often rely on coerced confessions by the defendants, and conviction is typical even in the absence of evidence. Corruption at all levels of the criminal justice system is rampant. However, Uzbekistan adopted new laws in 2008 which introduced some habeas corpus elements and strengthened the powers of defense attorneys. President Karimov also issued decrees establishing a judicial research center and encouraging improvements in professional legal standards.
Accomplishments. Uzbekistan continues to work toward the goals of the 1988 UN Drug Convention on combating illicit cultivation and production within its borders. The annual "Black Poppy" eradication campaign has been very successful and has virtually eliminated illicit poppy cultivation to the point that there is little left to eradicate. As of October 2008, the annual operation had eradicated a very modest 1.24 hectares of drug production crops. Efforts to achieve other UN Convention goals are hampered by the lack of effective laws, programs, money, appropriate international agreement, and coordination among law enforcement agencies.
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is continuing its efforts to implement projects focusing on improvements in law enforcement, precursor chemical control, border security, and drug demand reduction. UNODC has also reported that cooperation with Uzbek law enforcement agencies is steadily improving, particularly with regard to prompt reporting of seizure data. The Government of Uzbekistan also participated in the successful pilot phase of the Central Asia Regional Information and Coordination Center (CARICC), which includes a full-time Ministry of Internal Affairs liaison officer at the headquarters in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Uzbek authorities reported participating in a joint controlled delivery training exercise along with counterparts from Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan in October 2008 in the framework of the CARICC. The State Department, through the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), continues to provide financial support for several UNODC-implemented projects.
Law Enforcement Efforts. Preliminary statistics provided by the GOU show that in the first half of 2008, Uzbek law enforcement seized a total of 1,704 kg of illicit drugs, a 54 percent increase from the same period last year heroin accounted for 46 percent of the total, opium for 25 percent, cannabis 19 percent, kuknara 7 percent, and hashish three percent. The GOU also reported seizing 118,940 psychotropic pills in 90 separate seizures, the vast majority of which were prescription medicines. During the first six months of 2007 Uzbekistan reported 5,405 criminal cases pertaining to narcotics, including 176 arrests for drug smuggling and 2,931 for drug distribution. For the first six months of 2008 authorities report 5,737 narcotics-related criminal cases, including 176 arrests for drug smuggling and 3,219 for drug distribution. The number of criminal cases for the first half of 2008 represents a six percent increase compared with the same period in 2007. Four agencies with separate jurisdictions have counternarcotics responsibilities: the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD), the National Security Service (NSS), the State Customs Committee and, in a new development in 2008, the Ministry of Defense. The MVD concentrates on domestic crime, the NSS (which now includes the Border Guards) handles international organized crime (in addition to its intelligence role), and Customs works at the border (interdiction/seizures at the border are also carried out by the Border Guards during their normal course of duties). Despite this apparently clear delineation of responsibilities, a lack of operational coordination diminishes the effectiveness of counternarcotics efforts. The National Center for Drug Control was designed to minimize mistrust, rivalry and duplication of effort among the agencies, but the Center continues to have difficulty accomplishing this goal. However, the National Center for Drug Control readily shares data with the U.S. Government and other international entities.
In 2007, training and equipment were provided to the State Customs Committee under U.S.-Uzbekistan counternarcotics-related bilateral agreements. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) previously supported a Sensitive Investigation Unit (SIU) within the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which became operational in 2003. However, in March of 2007, DEA was forced to suspend its operations in Uzbekistan when visas for DEA personnel were not renewed. The DEA is anxious to return and support the GOU's counternarcotics mission. Despite overtures by the Government of Uzbekistan in 2008 that it would welcome reengagement with the DEA, a formal proposal submitted by the Embassy to reestablish a DEA office was turned down in July 2008, and efforts continue to clarify the GOU's stance on DEA activity conducted out of Embassy Tashkent.
According to National Center reports, most smuggling incidents involve one to two individuals, likely backed by a larger, organized crime groups. Resource constraints have limited the GOU's ability to investigate these cases. In general, information that has been gathered suggests smuggling rings are relatively small operations. These rings tend to be located on the border between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, where poor border controls allow group members to cross between the countries with relative ease. Government sources indicated that drug smuggling activities along the Turkmen-Uzbek border are not significant. Lack of training and equipment continues to hamper all Uzbek agencies. Basic necessities, even replacements for aging Soviet era equipment, remain in short supply or seem administratively difficult to obtain. Uzbekistan has relied heavily on international assistance from UNODC, the U.S., the UK, the EU, and others to supplement their own thinly-funded programs.
In 2008 Tashkent-based UNODC officials reported a noticeable increase in cooperation with the GOU. In December 2007 the UNODC completed construction of a modern border checkpoint facility at the main Hayraton crossing between Uzbekistan and Afghanistan which was partially funded by the U.S. Government through the State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). In June 2008 UNODC launched a project to upgrade security and interdiction capabilities at the Termez River Port linking Uzbekistan with Afghanistan, a project which is solely sponsored by the U.S. through INL. However, despite numerous statements from GOU officials affirming the grave common threat posed by increased narcotics production and trafficking in Central Asia, Uzbekistan still remained cautious about approving direct bilateral counternarcotics projects with the United States.
In 2008 Uzbekistan participated in "Operation Typhoon," which successfully targeted a major Central Asian group which trafficked Afghan drugs to Russia. The long-term investigation also involved authorities from Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Kazakhstan, which ultimately led to the leader of the organized criminal group and associates. Operation Typhoon netted seizures of 880 kilos of heroin and 100 kilos of opium. A total of 24 criminal cases were initiated and 42 active members of the group were arrested. Significantly, Operation Typhoon demonstrated the ability and willingness of Uzbek authorities to conduct a sustained investigative operation in collaboration with neighboring countries that reached beyond low-level "mules." Uzbek authorities also highlighted "Operation Caravan" which, in September 2008 in collaboration with Russia and Kazakhstan, resulted in the arrest of an international drug-smuggling ring that hid drugs in bags of garlic and transported them on buses.
Corruption. As a matter of policy the GOU does not encourage or facilitate illicit production or distribution of narcotic or psychotropic drugs or other controlled substances. However, corruption is endemic at all levels of government, and the paying of bribes is an accepted practice. There are anecdotal accounts of drug traffickers bribing customs and border officials to ignore narcotics shipments. It is likely that some government officials are involved with narcotics trafficking organizations.
Agreements and Treaties. Uzbekistan is a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention, the 1971 UN Convention on Psychotropic Substances, and the 1961 UN Single Convention as amended by the 1972 Protocol. Uzbekistan is also a party to the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and ratified the Protocol against Trafficking in Persons in August 2008, and has signed but not ratified the protocol on Migrant Smuggling. In July 2008 Uzbekistan acceded to the UN Convention against Corruption, an unexpected development which should help long-term efforts to increase transparency. Uzbekistan signed the Central Asian Counternarcotics Memorandum of Understanding with the UNODC, and in 2006 formally agreed to the establishment of a Central Asian Regional Information and Coordination Center (CARICC) to coordinate information sharing and joint counternarcotics efforts in Central Asia. A successful pilot project concluded in 2008 and has been extended until participating states ratify the CARICC agreement. Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan signed an agreement in September 1999 on cooperation in combating transnational crime, including narcotics trafficking. The five Central Asian countries, as well as Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey, are members of the Economic Coordination Mechanism supported by the UNODC. The GOU has also signed agreements on increased counternarcotics cooperation in 2006 in the context of its membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Collective Security Treaty Organization. However, to date, these agreements appear to have resulted in few tangible results.
Cultivation/Production. The annual "Operation Black Poppy" has all but eliminated illicit opium poppy cultivation in Uzbekistan. Authorities log between 600-800 hours of flying time in the course of the annual operation. Authorities report that in 2008 the first phase of Operation Black Poppy involved 875 search details involving 368 canines that yielded 805 instances of illegal drug cultivation. A total area of 1.24 hectares of cultivated crops were eradicated.
Drug Flow/Transit. Several major transnational trade routes facilitate the transportation of opiates and cannabis from Afghanistan through Uzbekistan to Russia and Europe. The border crossing point at Termez remains a point of concern as, in the past narcotics have been discovered in trucks returning to Uzbekistan after delivering humanitarian aid into Afghanistan, as well as on trains coming from Tajikistan. However, a UNODC-implemented border security project at the road and rail crossing has resulted in improved control over the border crossing with Afghanistan, and a new INL-funded UNODC project will focus on improving the control regime at the river port. While humanitarian aid and other cargo crossing the border from Uzbekistan to Afghanistan has dropped since 2004, Uzbek authorities report that approximately 1,000 containers cross from Uzbekistan to Afghanistan daily via railroad. The contents are generally not searched, and Uzbeks have requested scanning equipment to help ensure that contraband, including precursor chemicals, do not reach Afghanistan. The National Center and UNODC report that trafficking also continues along traditional smuggling routes and by conventional methods, mainly from Afghanistan into Surkhandarya Province and from Afghanistan via Tajikistan and the Kyrgyz Republic into Uzbekistan. The primary regions in Uzbekistan for the transit of drugs are Tashkent, Termez, the Fergana Valley, Samarkand and Syrdarya.
Domestic Programs/Demand Reduction. According to the National Drug Control Center, as of the end of 2007 there were approximately 21,777 registered drug addicts in Uzbekistan, of which eighty-five percent were heroin users. In contrast with the official statistics, the Ministry of Internal Affairs estimates there are 35,000 drug addicts in Uzbekistan. However, observers in the international community believe the official number of registered addicts is only 10-15 percent of the actual drug addicts in Uzbekistan. A UNODC study estimated that there are more than 130,000 opiate drug users in Uzbekistan.
Over the last few years, there has been an alarming growth in the number of persons who are HIV positive, and Uzbek officials say the problem is getting worse. There were 849 new HIV cases registered in the first half of 2008, of which 231 (27 percent) were injecting drug addicts, according to official GOU statistics. Approximately half of the 15,000-100,000 people infected with HIV are between the ages of 25 and 34. Hospitals with drug dependency recovery programs are inadequate to meet the increasing need for detox and treatment. The Ministry of Health and National Drug Control Center have recognized the need to focus increased attention on the drug problem, but do not have sufficient funds to do so adequately. Drug awareness programs are administered in cooperation with NGOs, schools, women and youth groups, religious organizations, national radio, and the mahalla (neighborhood) support system. In 2008 the GOU broadcast 129 TV and 304 radio broadcasts to raise awareness about the dangers of drug use, and 232 newspaper articles were published. In 2007, UNODC completed an INL-funded drug demand reduction project that demonstrated increased drug abuse awareness among school children. Additional INL funds were provided to UNODC in 2008 which will be used for a follow-up drug demand reduction project. A USAID drug demand reduction project which focused on key points along drug trafficking routes to prevent at-risk young people from becoming injecting drug users ended in 2008; some of the activities are continuing under the auspices of local NGOs or health facilities.
IV. U.S. Policy Initiatives and Programs
Bilateral Cooperation. U.S.-Uzbek bilateral counternarcotics assistance focuses on the prevention of illicit drug activities in and through Uzbekistan, and the need to increase the capacity of Uzbek law enforcement agencies to combat these activities. This assistance is most often provided in the form of technical assistance, training, and limited equipment donations. Since early 2005, the GOU has significantly slowed the pace of bilateral cooperation with the United States. The government continues to accept some operational training conducted in Uzbekistan or third countries as well as equipment donations. In spite of the GOU's continuing hesitance to engage in U.S.-sponsored programs in a variety of areas, including counternarcotics, eight mid-level officers from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the National Security Service participated in an eight-week training program at the International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) in Budapest, Hungary from August-October 2008. This was the first time Uzbekistan officers attended training at ILEA since 2005, although the GOU only agreed to send half the number of officers for which invitations were extended. An INL-funded drug demand reduction project administered by UNODC will begin in late 2008, which will build on a previously completed project to raise awareness about the dangers of drug use among schoolchildren.
The State Department's Bureau of Export and Related Border Security (EXBS) modestly increased its activities in Uzbekistan in 2008 as the political relationship improved. The Embassy delivered ten radioisotope identification devices to the Higher Military Customs Institute in June 2008. Several officials from various parts of the Government of Uzbekistan participated in an export control training workshop in Washington, DC in September 2008. A mobile x-ray van previously delivered to Customs was repaired with EXBS funds and cooperation from the Government of Kazakhstan in August 2008. The Department of Defense increased counternarcotics activities with the GOU during 2008, following reengagement between Central Command (CENTCOM), the Ministry of Defense, and the National Center for Drug Control. In previous years Ministry of Defense officials stated that counter-narcotics was not in its competency; however, a July 2008 diplomatic note from the GOU confirmed that the Ministry of Defense was ready to join CENTCOM's counter-narcotics program. GOU officials participated in DOD-sponsored counternarcotics events in FY 2008,including Marshall Center counternarcotics programs and other military-to-military training events concerning counternarcotics. Former CENTCOM Commander Admiral William Fallon and his successor, General Martin Dempsey, both raised the importance of counter-narcotics cooperation during separate visits to Uzbekistan in January 2008 and August 2008, respectively.
The Road Ahead. The U.S. remains committed to supporting appropriate Uzbek agencies to improve narcotics detection and drug interdiction capabilities. However, the effectiveness of U.S. assistance programs depends on the willingness of the Government of Uzbekistan to participate in these efforts.
V. Statistical Table
Summarized Drug Seizure Statistics
Uzbekistan
January-October 2008
|
|
2008 |
2007 |
|
Total drug related crimes |
7,837 |
7,328 |
Drug Seizures:
|
|
2008 |
2007 |
|
Total |
2,973kg |
1,554kg |
|
|
|
|
|
Heroin (kg) |
1,151 |
195.4 |
|
Opium (kg) |
995.4 |
666.1 |
|
Cannabis (kg) |
630 |
492.7 |
|
Hashish (kg) |
59.8 |
54 |
|
Opium Poppy Straw (kg) |
137 |
146 |
Drug seizures made in Uzbekistan by transportation type:
61.2%-Pedestrian
23.4%-Vehicular (excl. motorcycle)
5.8%-Rail
4.4%-Waterborne
4%-Air
1.2%-Motorcycle