Thailand, China to Jointly Check Drug-Trafficking Route

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, January 17, 2002

Thailand, China to Jointly Check Drug-Trafficking Route

Thailand and China have agreed to make an joint study of a new drug-trafficking route to the world market. The 400-kilometer-long upper part of the Mekong River runs from China's Yunnan province through Myanmar and Laos to northern Thailand, and is said to become a new drug transportation route.

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New drug-trafficking route

Thailand and China have agreed to make a joint study of the Mekong river which is found turning into a popular drug-trafficking route to the world market, the state-owned radio reported Thursday.

The agreement was reached at an meeting between Thai and Chinese drug-suppression officials from January 14 to 16, in the northern Thai province of Chiang Mai, 780 kilometers north of Bangkok, according to the report.

The 400-kilometer-long upper part of the Mekong River runs from China's Yunnan province through Myanmar and Laos to northern Thailand, and is said to become a new drug transportation route.

Joint efforts to check the route

The meeting was the first since the two countries singed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on anti-drug cooperation two years ago.

Thai officials said the study on the drug route along the Mekong river will begin soon after Thailand and China set up committees to work together on the matter.

The joint project will gather information on areas and piers used for loading and unloading drugs. It is believed that there are still a number of unregistered piers and areas along the river in the two countries being used by drug traffickers.

The two countries will also exchange information on ships and the identity of all crewmen for use in tracing suspected drug traffickers.

Golden Triangle, source of opium and heroin

Yunnan borders Myanmar and Laos, which along with northern Thailand make up the "Golden Triangle," one of the world's leading source of opium and heroin.

United Nations officials have warned that Southeast Asia must brace for a boom in drug trafficking as the closure of Afghanistan's borders would spur demand for drugs.

The notorious "Golden Triangle," where the borders of Myanmar, Thailand and Laos converge, now monopolises the Asian drugs trade as supply from Afghanistan -- the world's leading supplier of opium -- has effectively stopped.

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