Romania Remains Transit Route For Heroin Traffic Toward Western Europe- UN Report

According to the report, Romania, together with Bulgaria, Serbia, Macedonia and Croatia, are on transit routes used by drug traffickers to transport heroin to Western Europe. The amount of heroin transported via this route, about 55 - 60 tons, ends up in Germany and the Netherlands and transited either Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary and Austria, or Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and Austria. From Germany and the Netherlands, the drugs are transported to wider markets such as France, the UK and Spain.

In 2008, about 90 tons of heroin and morphine were transported using the southeast European trafficking route, which includes Bulgaria, Greece, Albania, Romania, Serbia, Macedonia, Bosnia, Croatia and Montenegro, and local authorities in these countries only managed to intercept one third of transports.

The report also notes that 5% of heroin traffickers arrested in Bulgaria between 2000 and 2008 are Romanian, 41% Bulgarian and 27% Turkish. In 2008, 110 Romanians suspected of trafficking cocaine were arrested in Spain, accounting for 1% of the traffickers arrested in the country. Also in 2008, 98 Romanians suspected of trafficking cocaine were arrested in Italy.

Cocaine consumption is high in Western and Central Europe, especially in Spain, UK, Italy, Ireland and Denmark, and significantly lower in Eastern and Southeastern Europe, including Romania.

Between 1995 and 2003, consumption of cannabis among students rose in some European countries, but stayed at the same level or decreased in others, including Romania.

Consumption of amphetamines is high in the Czech Republic, Denmark, UK, Norway and Estonia, but is below the European average in France, Greece, Romania and Malta.

Ecstasy consumption is also high in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Estonia, UK and Latvia, but low in Romania, Greece and Poland.

Worldwide, cannabis is the most consumed drug although synthetic drugs seem to be gaining ground, especially in Asia, the report notes. According to the report, 130 million to 190 million people consumed cannabis at least once in 2009, while 30 million to 40 million people worldwide took synthetic drugs.

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