This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 HELSINKI 001325 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR INL, EUR/NB; JUSTICE FOR OIA, AFMLS, AND NDDS; 
TREASURY FOR FINCEN; DEA FOR OILS AND OFFICE OF DIVERSION 
CONTROL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SNAR SMIG SOCI PREL FI
SUBJECT: FINLAND:  2005 INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL 
STRATEGY REPORT, PART 1 
 
REF: STATE 209561 
 
¶1.  (U)  This report is keyed to the relevant sections in 
reftel.  Embassy poc for the drugs and chemical diversion 
control portion of the INCSR is Poloff David Allen Schlaefer 
(SchlaeferDA2@state.gov).  Embassy poc for the financial 
crimes portion of the INCSR is Econoff Mika Cleverley 
(CleverleyMX@state.gov). 
 
¶I.  SUMMARY 
----------- 
 
(U)  Finland is not a significant narcotics producing or 
trafficking country.  However, drug use and drug-related 
crime has increased over the past decade.  Finland's 
constitution places a strong emphasis on the protection of 
civil liberties, and this sometimes has a negative effect on 
law enforcement's ability to investigate and prosecute 
drug-related crime.  Electronic surveillance techniques such 
as wiretapping are generally prohibited in all but the most 
serious investigations.  Finnish political culture tends to 
favor demand reduction and rehabilitation efforts over 
strategies aimed at reducing supply.  Police believe 
increased drug use may be attributable to the wider 
availability of narcotics in post-cold war Europe, increased 
experimentation by Finnish youth, cultural de-stigmatization 
of narcotics use, and insufficient law enforcement resources. 
 
(U)  While there is some overland narcotics trafficking 
across the Russian border, police believe existing border 
controls are mostly effective in preventing this route from 
becoming a major trafficking conduit into Finland and western 
Europe.  Estonian organized crime syndicates are believed 
responsible for most drug trafficking into Finland. 
Estonia's accession to the Schengen Treaty has complicated 
law enforcement efforts to combat narcotics trafficking. 
Asian crime syndicates have begun to use new air routes 
between Helsinki and Asian cities like Bangkok to facilitate 
trafficking-in-persons, and there is some concern that these 
routes could be used for narcotics trafficking as well. 
Finland is a major donor to the UNDCP and is active in 
counternarcotics efforts within the EU.  Finland is a party 
to the 1988 UN Drug Convention. 
 
 
II.  STATUS OF COUNTRY 
---------------------- 
 
(U)  Narcotics production, cultivation, and the production of 
precursor chemicals in Finland is relatively modest in scope. 
 Most drugs that are consumed in Finland are produced 
elsewhere, and Finland is not a source country for the export 
of narcotics abroad.  Estonia, Russia, and Spain are 
Finland's principal sources for illicit drugs.  Finnish law 
criminalizes the distribution, sale, and transport of 
narcotics;  the GoF cooperates with other countries and 
international law enforcement organizations regarding 
extradition and precursor chemical control.  Domestic drug 
abuse and rehabilitation programs are excellent, although 
access to rehabilitation programs for prison inmates was 
criticized in 2005 as being insufficient due to resource 
constraints. 
 
(U)  The overall incidence of drug use in Finland remains low 
(relative to many other western countries);  however, drug 
use has increased over the past decade.  Cocaine is rare, but 
amphetamines, methamphetamine, synthetic "club" drugs, and 
heroin and heroin-substitutes can be found.  Finland has 
historically had one of Europe's lowest cannabis-use rates, 
but cannabis seizures have increased since 2004;  police 
attribute this to new smuggling routes from southern Spain, a 
popular tourist destination for Finns and home to a Finnish 
"migr" community.  Ecstasy, GHB, Ketamine ("Vitamin K") and 
other MDMA-type drugs are concentrated among young people and 
associated with the "club culture" in Helsinki and other 
large cities.  Social Welfare authorities believe the 
introduction of GHB and other "date rape" drugs into Finland 
has led to an increase in sexual assaults.  Finnish law 
enforcement authorities admit that resource constraints and 
restrictions on electronic surveillance and undercover police 
work complicate efforts to penetrate the ecstasy trade. 
Changing social and cultural attitudes toward drug use also 
contribute to this phenomenon. 
 
(U)  Heroin use began to increase in Finland in the late 
90's, but seizures have declined since 2004.  Subutex 
(buprenorphine) and other heroin-substitutes seem to have 
supplanted actual heroin use to some extent.  France remains 
the major source for Subutex.  According to police, French 
doctors can prescribe up to three weeks supply of Subutex. 
Finnish couriers travel frequently to France to obtain their 
supply which is then resold illegally with a high mark-up. 
Possession of Subutex is legal in Finland with a doctor's 
prescription, but Finnish physicians do not readily write 
prescriptions for Subutex unless patients are actually in a 
supervised withdrawal program. 
 
(U)  According to Finnish law enforcement, there are 
approximately two dozen organized crime syndicates operating 
in Finland;  most are based in Estonia or Russia.  Since 
Estonia's entry into the Schengen Region, Estonian travelers 
to Finland are no longer subject to routine inspection at 
ports-of-entry, making it difficult to intercept narcotics. 
The police report that a drug dealer in Helsinki can phone a 
supplier in Tallinn, and within three hours a courier will 
have arrived in Helsinki via ferry with a shipment of drugs. 
Although Estonian syndicates control the operations, many of 
the domestic street-level dealers are Finns.  In the past, 
the Estonian rings primarily smuggled Belgian or Dutch-made 
ecstasy into Finland, but beginning in 2003, larger 
quantities of Estonian-produced ecstasy began hitting the 
Finnish market, although the quality (and market value) is 
lower.  Estonian smugglers also organize the shipment of 
Moroccan cannabis from Southern Spain to Finland.  The police 
report that cooperation with Estonian law enforcement is 
excellent, and both countries maintain permanent liaison 
officers in the other. 
 
(U)  Russian organized crime syndicates remain active inside 
Finland.  Russian traffickers based out of St. Petersburg are 
the primary suppliers of heroin, although Estonians are now 
active in this area as well.  The police are increasingly 
concerned about Asian crime groups using new air routes from 
Helsinki to major Asian cities like Bangkok as a narcotics 
smuggling route.  Asian syndicates are already using these 
routes for human smuggling and trafficking-in-persons. 
Finland's Frontier Guard will post a permanent liaison 
officer to Beijing in 2006 to better monitor this phenomenon. 
 
 
III.  COUNTRY ACTIONS AGAINST DRUGS IN 2005 
------------------------------------------- 
 
(U)  POLICY INITIATIVES:  Finland's comprehensive policy 
statement on illegal drugs was issued in 1998;  the statement 
articulated a zero-tolerance policy regarding narcotics. 
However, a 2001 law created a system of fines for simple 
possession offenses rather than jail time.  The fine system 
enjoys widespread popular support, and is chiefly used to 
punish youth found in possession of small quantities of 
marijuana, hashish, or ecstasy.  Some Finnish authorities 
have expressed concern about the "mixed message" that the 
fine system sends to Finns about drug use and would prefer 
stiffer penalties.  There is limited political and public 
support for demand reduction through stronger punitive 
measures, however. 
 
(U)  ACCOMPLISHMENTS:  The GoF's strategy in 2005 focused on 
regional and multilateral cooperation aimed at stemming the 
flow of drugs before they reach Finland's borders.  In 2005, 
Parliament passed a law expanding the authority of the 
Frontier Guard to cover the entire country (not just 
immediate border areas), enhancing the Guard's ability to 
combat narcotics trafficking.  Finland participated in 
several multilateral conferences and seminars on combating 
narcotics globally and in the Nordic-Baltic region. 
Finland's Interior Minister met with other Nordic ministers 
to discuss regional narcotics strategy, and in September 
visited Washington where he met with U.S. officials to 
discuss transnational security issues.  Finland played an 
active role in EU efforts to combat narcotics trafficking. 
 
(U)  LAW ENFORCEMENT EFFORTS:  The police report that arrests 
and seizures in 2005 are projected to have remained stable 
(statistics are not yet available).  Law enforcement focuses 
limited police resources on major narcotics cases and 
significant traffickers.  The Frontier Guard plans to station 
a permanent liaison officer in Asia (Beijing) for the first 
time in order to better monitor and combat narcotics 
trafficking.  Finland in 2005 continued its impressive record 
of multilateral cooperation.  Finnish police maintain liaison 
officers in ten European cities (six in Russia).  The 
Prosecutor-General's Office maintains liaison officers in St. 
Petersburg, Tallinn, and Moscow.  In addition, Finland and 
the other Nordic countries pool their resources and share 
information gathered by Nordic liaison officers stationed in 
34 posts around the world.  Finland is active in Europol and 
Eurojust anti-narcotics efforts.  Finland in 2005 chaired the 
Council of Baltic Sea States/Organized Crime Task Force, and 
a Finn was appointed as the first Director of the new EU 
Border Control Agency. 
 
(U)  CORRUPTION:  As a matter of government policy, Finland 
does not encourage or facilitate illicit production or 
distribution of narcotic or psychotropic drugs or other 
controlled substances, or the laundering of proceeds from 
illegal drug transactions.  Finnish officials do not engage 
in, facilitate, or encourage the illicit production or 
distribution of such drugs or substances, or the laundering 
of proceeds from illegal drug transactions.  Official 
corruption is not a problem in Finland.  There have been no 
arrests or prosecutions of public officials charged with 
corruption or related offenses linked to narcotics in Finnish 
history. 
 
(U)  AGREEMENTS AND TREATIES:  Finland is a party to the 1988 
UN Drug Convention, and its legislation is consistent with 
all the Convention's goals.  Finnish judicial authorities are 
empowered to seize the assets, real and financial, of 
criminals.  Finland is also a party to the 1961 UN Single 
Convention on Narcotic Drugs, the 1972 Protocol Amending the 
Single Convention, and the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic 
Substances.  Finland has extradition treaties with many 
countries, and ratified the EU extradition treaty in 1999. 
Finland ratified the EU Arrest Warrant in 2005.  Finland is a 
signatory to the UN Convention Against Transnational Crime, 
the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in 
Persons, and the Protocol Against the Smuggling of Migrants. 
A 1976 bilateral extradition treaty is in force between the 
United States and Finland, although Finland will only 
extradite non-Finnish citizens to the U.S.  Finland is 2004 
signed the bilateral instrument of the EU-U.S. Extradition 
Treaty;  however, the Parliament has not yet ratified the 
treaty over concern that certain U.S. rendition practices in 
Europe might violate Finnish constitutional guarantees. 
 
(U)  Finland has also concluded a Customs Mutual Assistance 
Agreement with the United States.  Finland is a member of the 
major Donor's Group within the Dublin Group.  The vast 
majority of Finland's financial and other assistance to 
drug-producing and transit countries has been via the UNDCP. 
Finland concluded a bilateral extradition treaty with Estonia 
shortly after that country gained independence. 
 
(U)  CULTIVATION/PRODUCTION:  There were no reported seizures 
of indigenously cultivated opiates, no recorded diversions of 
precursor chemicals, and no detection of illicit 
methamphetamine, cocaine, or LSD laboratories in Finland in 
2004;  reports for 2005 are not yet available.  Finland's 
climate makes cultivation of cannabis and opiates almost 
impossible.  Local cannabis cultivation is believed to be 
limited to small numbers of plants in individual homes using 
artificial lighting for personal use.  The distribution of 
the 22 key precursor chemicals used for cocaine, amphetamine, 
and heroin production is tightly controlled. 
 
(U)  DRUG FLOW/TRANSIT:  Hashish and ecstasy are the drugs 
most often seized by the police.  Finland is not a transit 
country for narcotics.  Most drugs trafficked into Finland 
originate in or pass through Estonia.  Finnish authorities 
report that their land border with Russia is well guarded on 
both sides to ensure that it does not become a major transit 
route. 
 
(U)  DOMESTIC PROGRAMS (DEMAND REDUCTION):  The GoF 
emphasizes rehabilitation and education over punitive 
measures to curb demand for illegal drugs.  The central 
government gives substantial autonomy to local governments to 
address demand reduction using general revenue grants. 
Finnish schools in 2005 continued to educate students about 
the dangers of drugs.  Finland's national public health 
service offered rehabilitation services to users and addicts. 
 Such programs typically use a holistic approach that 
emphasizes social and economic reintegration into society and 
is not solely focused on eliminating the subject's use and 
abuse of illegal drugs.  The government was criticized in 
2005 for failure to provide adequate access to rehabilitation 
programs for prison inmates. 
 
 
IV.  U.S. POLICY INITIATIVES 
---------------------------- 
 
(U)  The U.S. has historically worked with Finland and the 
other Nordic countries through multilateral organizations in 
an effort to combat narcotics trafficking in the 
Nordic-Baltic region.  This involves assistance to and 
cooperation with the Baltic countries and Russia.  Finland in 
2005 participated in a DEA-sponsored regional drug 
enforcement seminar. 
 
(U)  BILATERAL COOPERATION:  Finnish law enforcement 
maintains a close relationship with American counterparts; 
cooperation is excellent. 
 
(U)  THE ROAD AHEAD:  The U.S. anticipates continued close 
cooperation with Finland in the fight against narcotics.  The 
only limitations to such cooperation will likely be the 
smaller resource base that Finnish law enforcement 
authorities have at their disposal. 
 
 
¶V.  STATISTICAL TABLES 
---------------------- 
 
(U)  2005 statistics for narcotics seizures and arrests are 
not yet available; septel with statistics will follow as soon 
as they are released by the GoF. 
 
 
HYATT