The European Union’s department in charge of illegal drug monitoring have cautioned that, illegal drug marketing has been soaring high on the European continent.
The annual report of the department contained, a disturbing discovery. It further claimed that due to the rapid recovery of drug usage and trafficking to levels seen before the COVID 19 pandemic, drug consumers in Europe are now exposed to a greater variety of highly pure drugs.
The report revealed that, cannabis remained the most trafficked and the most used illegal drug across the European continent. Cannabis was used by over 22.6 million people in Europe, with over 15-year-old abusing it last year.
However, cannabis confiscation in around the world have increased dramatically, and the use of some new synthetic drugs, have drawn officials to this very conclusion. The EU agency stated that, in 2021, 41 new illicit drugs were reported for the first time.
Alex Goosdeel, the Director for European Monitoring Center for Drug and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) described the issue as disturbing. “I summarize this with the phrase; everywhere, everything, everyone.”
“Established illicit drugs are now widely accessible and potent new substances continue to emerge. Almost everything with psychoactive properties can appear on the drug market.”
Alex Goosdeel, Director of European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction.
Moreover, ketamine and nitrous oxide, also known as “laughing gas,” are among the new, widely used chemicals, that are causing worries due to the prevalence of reports of bladder issues, nerve damage, and lung injuries.
Also, synthetic opioids are on increasing popularity, and have been connected to fatal overdoses in Baltic nations, along with the widespread availability of heroin across the continent.
According to the survey, Europe’s opioid scenario is not similar to the severe situation in North America, where fentanyl and other opioid overdoses have contributed to a drug catastrophe. Due to the fact that, 74 new synthetic opioids have been discovered on the market since 2009, the FDA cautioned that, this class of medications pose a hazard for the future.
European Union’s Commissioner of Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson stated that, “We must make sure America’s present does not become Europe’s future.”
However, France added one substance to its bucket list of illicit drug consumption, earlier this week. Another further cause of worry has been the emergence of cannabinoid HHC, which have potent psychological impacts, but are allowed in a number of the 27-nation bloc due to legal lapses.
EU member nations seized 303 tons of cocaine in 2021, setting new records for the continent. The ports of Antwerp and Rotterdam have now become the primary entry points for Latin American cocaine cartels into Europe, with the study claiming that, 75% of that volume was intercepted in Belgium, the Netherlands, and Spain.
According to preliminary statistics, the port of Antwerp had the largest amount of cocaine seized, rising to 110 tons from 91 tons, the EMCDDA revealed.
Additionally, 34 cocaine labs were destroyed, and significant amounts of a precursor used to make cocaine were seized by EU nations, proving that “large-scale cocaine production steps take place in the European Union.” The EU saw an increase in criminal activity and corruption as the cocaine market grew, with fierce rivalry among smugglers fueling an increase in murders and harassment.
According to federal authorities in Belgium, drug trade is rapidly expanding in society as a result of international criminal gangs’ solid foundations there and their brutal and violent tactics.
“Criminals use the profits from drug trafficking to buy people, buy police officers, and to buy murder. Violence is growing in scale and brutality. In the past, criminals shot people in the leg as a warning, now they shoot them in the head.”
Ylva Johansson, European Union Commissioner for Home Affairs.
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