Former Moldovan Police Official Details Shifting Heroin Routes from Afghanistan to Europe

A former Moldovan police official stated that heroin smuggling from Afghanistan to Europe, controlled by organized crime networks, has seen changes in its transit routes in recent years.

Vladimir Chaban, ex-head of Moldova's police anti-narcotics department, told the Izvestia newspaper that groups with Kurdish backgrounds were involved in many heroin-related crimes examined in Moldova, with some previously associated with the Kurdistan Workers' Party. He noted that Turkish authorities have been cautious in sharing information on these networks due to internal security concerns.

Chaban identified two primary routes for heroin transit: one passing through Azerbaijan, Georgia and Russia, and another from Turkey to Bulgaria and then to European Union countries. However, with strengthened controls on Bulgaria's borders, heroin transfers from Turkey to Europe are now mostly conducted by sea.

Drug smuggling routes from Afghanistan to Europe continue to evolve, influenced by security measures and regional changes, according to the report.

The Taliban claim to have achieved significant successes in combating drug cultivation and smuggling in Afghanistan since regaining power.