UNODC concentrates its efforts on supporting the vulnerable border areas against the trafficking of Afghan opiates through strengthening the border crossing points and establishing the working intelligence-sharing and enhanced cross-border communication mechanisms allowing detection and interception of contraband, including narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursor chemicals.
On 17 August 2023, customs and border officers from the UNODC-supported Border Liaison Office (BLO) at the Oybek border crossing point (BCP) located in the Tashkent region of Uzbekistan intercepted a large shipment of drugs.
Drugs by weight of 55 kg were identified in the vehicle, which are 49 polyethylene packages in a gas cylinder of the vehicle and 31 polyethylene packages in a petrol tank.
The experts of Central Customs Laboratory concluded that the packages included 52.8 kg of hashish, more than 2 kg of heroin and a tube of glue with 950 grams of synthetic drug.
Border Liaison Office (BLO) at the BCP “Oybek” BCP was established in 2014 and is one of 23 BLOs in Central Asian region which were established at the key border crossing points under the Regional initiative on Enhancing Cross-Border Cooperation in Central Asia of the Sub-programme 1 “Preventing and Countering Transnational Organized Crime” of the UNODC Programme for Central Asia. It is the first project to establish BLOs in Central Asia, and its stakeholders are the Ministries of Internal Affairs, Border Troops, Customs and Drug Control Agencies of each country.
For further information please contact:
Arifa Fatikhova
Communications and External Relations Officer
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
Regional Office for Central Asia
Mobile: (+998 99) 825-05-43 | Email: arifa.fatikhova[at]un.org
