Turkey Tops List of Narcotic Seizures Last Year

The True Path Party (DYP) Deputy for Igdır Professor Dursun Akdemir asked the Turkish Interior Minister Abdulkadir Aksu from which countries the narcotic was coming and whether Turkey was a bridge for the narcotic as has been claimed. Aksu replied by recalling European Union (EU) Commissioner Gunter Verheugen’s statement saying, "Turkey has taken important steps to prevent narcotics produced in Afghanistan to be taken to Europe through Turkey." Then he summarized the precautions.

According to information of Aksu, a strong partnership to fight against narcotics has been built between the Turkish Academy Against Narcotics and Organized Crime (TADOC) and the United Nations (UN) and other neighboring countries. This partnership has given training about the production, use and smuggling of drugs and organized crime.

The minister showed graphs and charts showing the increase in the fight against narcotics and the training of staff and improvements in technology. In 2004 Turkey increased the amount of narcotics seized by 160 percent, which is a bigger rise than any country in Central and Western Europe.