2023-12-28 15:39:29
HEALTH – The growing spread of fentanyl extends beyond American borders. While concerns over Afghanistan’s poppy ban and its impact on the expansion of fentanyl persist, the presence of the substance also unsettles Europe and sparks international tensions.
The growing threat of fentanyl, a highly potent synthetic opioid, has expanded beyond the borders of the United States and Canada to Europe, the Americas and Oceania. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, speaking at the United Nations General Assembly, called it a “global threat.” While fentanyl and its derivatives are primarily a problem in North America and some European countries, there is concern about the drug being detected in more regions.
Poppy ban behind fentanyl expansion
The ban on poppy cultivation in Afghanistan, decided by the Taliban, is causing concern about the possible development of the drug market. The poppy is essential to the production of heroin, and its elimination could encourage drug traffickers to produce and sell synthetic opioids such as fentanyl.
Fentanyl’s presence extends from the United States to Canada, where it has been implicated in 85% of opioid overdose deaths in 2022. In Latin America, fentanyl is not yet a major concern, but cases Recent developments in Costa Rica and Honduras indicate possible expansion. Oceania, including Australia, has seen an increase in fentanyl seizures, while other synthetic drugs are affecting different regions of the world.
A threat to Europe?
According to the European Drugs Report, heroin remains the most widely used illicit opioid in Europe. Although fentanyl is not among the most widely used drugs in the world and appears to be a problem only in the United States and Canada, concern has spread to Europe. Days after Blinken’s statements on the global threat of fentanyl and other synthetic drugs, European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson warned Politico that Europe must prepare for the arrival of these substances synthetics.
“It’s either a problem they have, or don’t know they have, or a problem they will have.”Blinken told Johansson, who also asserted that the EU had the “ability” to produce illicit fentanyl. Johansson highlights the need for preparation for this growing risk.
Law enforcement agencies made 187 seizures of fentanyl derivatives in twelve countries in 2021. Specifically, around five and a half kilos and almost 5,500 tablets of these drugs were seized on the European continent. Additionally, fentanyl and its derivatives were linked to at least 137 deaths that same year, most of them occurring in Germany. The report also points out that the numbers could be higher and that many of these deaths could be linked to misuse of the substance prescribed by medical professionals rather than illicit use of fentanyl.
From medical prescriptions to international tensions
One of the most shocking aspects of this crisis lies in its introduction into consumption habits, not through clandestine drug trafficking in the streets, but rather in the heart of medical practices. Fentanyl, an extremely potent substance, has been prescribed by tens of thousands of doctors to treat chronic non-oncologic pain.
This shift from medical use to substance abuse has played a major role in the scale of the opioid crisis, highlighting flaws in the monitoring and regulation of medical prescriptions. This devastating impact highlights the urgent need for a re-evaluation of prescribing protocols, as well as the need for increased awareness within the medical community and the general public of the risks associated with the use of opioid substances.
In the United States, tens of thousands of individuals have filed lawsuits against the manufacturer Purdue Pharma, accusing the company of blatant deception regarding the addictive nature of its drug, OxyContin. The economic consequences of this situation have transformed Purdue Pharma, originally a pharmaceutical giant, into a major target of massive lawsuits. This has made the market more vulnerable to the entry of more potent and dangerous doses of drugs.
Mexican cartels have particularly taken advantage of this, which has caused friction between Mexico and China — the world’s main supplier of substances used to make drugs — and with the United States, where the most extremist voices are calling for intervention. direct military action against drug trafficking. For its part, the United States has imposed sanctions against 17 Chinese people and companies whom it accuses of profiting from this illegal traffic. Last July, Washington called on 84 countries to establish a “global alliance” against this substance.
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