There is no new trafficking in Syria
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SYRIA
information to report on production and since submission of the 1987 INCSR. In May 1987 the Damascus press reported a decision by the Syrians and Lebanese to end poppy cultivation in the Biqa' Valley in Lebanon. Embassy Damascus has been unable to follow up on these press reports or obtain any additional information Syrian policies vis-a-vis these new eradication efforts.
TURKEY
on
Summary. We expect the Government of Turkey
Turkey (GOT) to continue to cooperate fully with U.S. and European law enforcement agencies to suppress trafficking. As the land bridge from the producing areas in Southwest Asia and the markets in Europe, Turkey will always face a smuggling problem. The problem is aggravated by the inability and/or unwillingness of
of its neighbors to the East (Iran, Iraq and Syria) to do much to suppress the traffic from their side of the border. With continued violence from Kurdish separatists creating disarray in the border provinces, control of cross-border smuggling remains difficult. End Summary.
There is no significant illicit production of narcotics in Turkey. Plans to expand licit production were devastated by a bad winter, which has
has reduced the expected harvest of poppy straw to 4,000 tons, up from last year's 3,500, but well below plans. The Soil Products Office (TMO) has moved to expand production by announcing that it will offer 50,000 hectares for licensing in 1987/88, compared with 20,800 hectares in 1986/87. Other measures include increasing prices paid
paid for poppy straw from 12.6 cents per kilo to 17.1 to 18.3 cents per kilo and undertaking to purchase poppy seed for export. TMO's Bolvadin alkaloids plant can process up to 20,000 tons of poppy straw per year.
Turkey's Director
Director of Customs, Ertan Cireli,
Ertan Cireli, has moved on to become Undersecretary for Tourism. He will be succeeded at Customs by Mustafa Gorson, a career administrator in the Ministry of Finance.
With no illicit production to speak of, there is no formal eradication program. Jandarma reports eradication of 795 poppy plants, all overplanting of
of licensed fields.
fields. Jandarma also reports eradication of 102,000 cannabis plants. Turkish cannabis has a low THC content and is not relevant to the world market.