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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BERLIN 003353 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INL, EUR/ERA, EUR/AGS 
JUSTICE FOR OIA, AFMLS, AND NDDS 
TREASURY FOR FINCEN 
DEA FOR OILS AND OFFICE OF DIVERSION CONTROL 
FRANKFURT FOR ICE AND DEA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SNAR PREL PGOV KCRM GM
SUBJECT: GERMANY 2006 INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL 
STRATEGY REPORT (INCSR) - PART 1 
 
REF: STATE 154928 
 
 ¶I. SUMMARY 
Although not a major drug producing country, Germany is a 
consumer and transit country for narcotics.  The government 
actively combats drug-related crimes and focuses on 
prevention programs and assistance to drug addicts.  In 2006, 
Germany continued to implement its Action Plan on Drugs and 
Addiction launched in 2003, with a specific focus on 
prevention.  Germany is a party to the 1988 UN Drug 
Convention.  Cannabis is the most commonly consumed illicit 
drug in Germany.  Organized crime continued to be heavily 
engaged in narcotics trafficking.  The Federal Office of 
Criminal Investigation (BKA) publishes an annual narcotics 
report on illicit drug related crimes, including data on 
seizures, drug flows, and consumption.  Their report was a 
key source document for this report.  The most recent 
complete German figures available for narcotics cover 
calendar year 2005.  That year saw drug-related crimes 
(276,740) drop for the first time having risen continuously 
since 1996. 
 
II. STATUS OF GERMANY 
 
Germany is not a significant drug cultivation or production 
country.  However, Germany,s location at the center of 
Europe and its well-developed infrastructure make it a major 
transit hub.  Ecstasy is transited from the Netherlands to 
and through Germany to Eastern and Southern Europe.  Heroin 
is trafficked to Germany from Turkey, Austria, and Italy. 
Cocaine is transited through Germany from South America and 
the Netherlands.  Organized crime continues to be heavily 
engaged in narcotics trafficking.  Germany is a major 
manufacturer of pharmaceuticals, making it a potential source 
for precursor chemicals used in the production of illicit 
narcotics. 
 
III. COUNTRY ACTIONS AGAINST DRUGS IN 2006 
 
POLICY INITIATIVES.  Germany continues to implement the 
Federal Health Ministry,s "Action Plan on Drugs and 
Addiction" adopted by the cabinet in 2003.  The action plan 
establishes a comprehensive multi-year strategy to combat 
narcotics.  The key pillars are (1) prevention, (2) therapy 
and counseling, (3) survival aid as an immediate remedy for 
drug-addicts, and (4) interdiction and supply reduction. 
Germany also abides by the EU Narcotics Action Plan 
2005-2008. 
 
The National Inter-agency Drug and Addiction Council that had 
been established in 2004 to coordinate and review the 
implementation of the government,s "Action Plan on Drugs and 
Addiction" passed a new working program in March 2006. The 
program recommends, inter alia, a continued focus on demand 
reduction in the consumption of cannabis. 
 
LAW ENFORCEMENT EFFORTS.  Counter-narcotics law enforcement 
remains a high priority for the BKA and the Federal Office of 
Customs Investigation (ZKA).  German law enforcement agencies 
scored numerous successes in seizing illicit narcotics and 
arresting suspected drug dealers. 
 
According to the most recent publicized analyses, the number 
of narcotics related seizures increased in 2005.  However, 
the seized amounts decreased overall.  Seizures of ecstasy 
decreased in 2005, while seizures of amphetamine, heroin and 
cocaine increased.  The number of seizures of cannabis rose 
in 2005, while the amount of seized cannabis fell.  In 2006, 
the BKA seized significant amounts of hashish transported 
from the Pakistan/Afghanistan border region.  The ZKA 
conducted 7,683 criminal narcotics related investigations in 
¶2005.  The Frankfurt/Main Airport Customs Office alone seized 
846 kilograms of illicit drugs in 2005 at Europe,s second 
busiest passenger airport and a major freight hub -- about 
the same amount as in 2004. 
 
CORRUPTION.  As a matter of government policy, Germany does 
not encourage or facilitate the illicit production or 
distribution of drugs or substances, or the laundering of 
proceeds from illegal drug transactions.  No cases of 
official corruption have come to the USG,s attention. 
 
AGREEMENTS AND TREATIES.  A 1978 extradition treaty and a 
 
BERLIN 00003353  002 OF 003 
 
 
1986 supplement treaty are in force between the U.S. and 
Germany.  The U.S. and Germany signed a Mutual Legal 
Assistance Treaty in Criminal Matters (MLAT) on October 14, 
2003, which the German Parliament is expected to ratify early 
¶2007.  The U.S. Senate gave its advice and consent to 
ratification of the treaty on July 27, 2006.  In addition, 
the U.S.-EU Agreement on Mutual Legal Assistance and 
Extradition from 2003 and implementing agreements are 
expected to be ratified in Germany and the U.S. in 2007. 
There is a Customs Mutual Legal Assistance Agreement (CMAA) 
between the U.S. and Germany.  In addition, Germany is party 
to the 1988 UN Drug Convention, the 1971 UN Convention on 
Psychotropic Substances, and the 1961 UN Single Convention as 
amended by the 1972 Protocol.  Germany signed the UN 
Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime on December 
12, 2000 and ratified the Convention on June 14, 2006. 
Germany signed the UN Convention Against Corruption on 
December 9, 2003.  Ratification is still pending. 
 
CULTIVATION AND PRODUCTION.  Germany is not a significant 
producer of hashish or marijuana.  The BKA statistics 
reported seizure of eight synthetic drug labs in Germany in 
¶2005. 
 
DRUG FLOW/TRANSIT.  Germany,s central location in Europe and 
its well-developed infrastructure make it a major transit 
hub.  Traffickers smuggle cocaine from South America to and 
through Germany to other European countries.  Heroin transits 
from Eastern Europe to Western Europe, especially to the 
Netherlands.  Cannabis is trafficked to Germany mainly from 
the Netherlands.  Frankfurt Airport is still a major 
trans-shipment point for Ecstasy destined to the U.S. and for 
other drugs coming into Europe. 
 
DOMESTIC PROGRAMS/DEMAND REDUCTION.  The Federal Ministry of 
Health continues to be the lead agency in developing, 
coordinating, and implementing Germany,s drug policies and 
programs.  The National Drug Commissioner at the Federal 
Ministry of Health coordinates Germany,s national drug 
policy.  Drug consumption is treated as a health and social 
issue.  Policies stress prevention through education.  The 
Ministry funds numerous research and prevention programs. 
Addiction therapy programs focus on drug-free treatment, 
psychological counseling, and substitution therapy.  Initial 
results of a heroin-based treatment pilot project to treat 
seriously ill, long-term opiate addicts published in 2006 
found heroin-based treatment for this group had advantages 
over a substitution therapy approach. 
 
In 2006, there were 25 medically controlled "drug consumption 
rooms" in Germany supplementing therapy programs to offer 
survival aid.  German federal law requires that personnel at 
these sites provide medical counseling and other professional 
help and ensure that no crimes are committed. 
 
Drug-related deaths have been decreasing for several years. 
In 2005, they dropped by four percent compared to 2004, 
making 2005 the year with the lowest number of drug-related 
deaths since 1989.  The number of first-time users of illicit 
drugs fell five percent in 2005 compared to 2004.  First-time 
use of ecstasy, heroin and cocaine decreased in 2005, while 
the first-time use of crack increased. 
 
IV. U.S. POLICY INITIATIVES AND PROGRAMS 
 
BILATERAL COOPERATION.  German law enforcement agencies work 
closely and effectively with their U.S. counterparts in 
narcotics-related cases.  Close cooperation to curb drug 
trafficking continues among DEA, the Federal Bureau of 
Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Customs Service, and their 
German counterparts, including the BKA, the State Offices for 
Criminal Investigation (LKAs), and the ZKA.  German agencies 
routinely cooperate very closely with their U.S. counterparts 
in joint investigations, using the full range of 
investigative measures, such as undercover operations. 
German-U.S. cooperation to stop diversion of chemical 
precursors for cocaine production continues to be close 
(e.g., Operations "Purple" and "Topaz").  A DEA Diversion 
Investigator is assigned to the BKA headquarters in Wiesbaden 
to facilitate cooperation and joint investigations.  The DEA 
Frankfurt Country Office facilitates information exchanges 
and operational support between German and U.S. drug 
enforcement agencies.  The BKA and DEA also participate in a 
 
BERLIN 00003353  003 OF 003 
 
 
tablet exchange program to compare samples of ecstasy pills. 
 
THE ROAD AHEAD:  The U.S. will continue its close cooperation 
with Germany on all bilateral and international 
counternarcotics fronts, including the Dublin Group of 
Countries Coordinating Narcotics Assistance and the United 
Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). 
 
¶V. Chemical Control 
 
(NOTE: A response to STATE 155254 regarding ephedrine and 
pseudoephedrine issues will be sent septel.  End Note). 
 
Summary.  Germany,s large chemical industry manufactures and 
sells most of the precursor and essential chemicals that may 
also be used in illicit drug manufacture.  Germany produces 
large quantities of pseudoephedrine for licit pharmaceutical 
production.  The country is a party to the 1988 UN Drug 
Convention and has chemical control laws and regulations, 
based on the EU regulations, meeting the Convention,s 
requirements.  Germany has an effective and well-respected 
chemical control program that monitors the chemical industry, 
as well as chemical imports and exports.  Cooperation between 
chemical control officials and the chemical industry is a key 
element in Germany,s chemical control strategy. 
 
Legal Framework.  In Germany, the trade in precursor 
chemicals is regulated by a comprehensive framework of laws, 
dominated by binding EU regulations.  The federal Precursor 
Control Act, which takes EU law into account, supplements the 
EU regulations and criminalizes the diversion of controlled 
chemicals for the manufacture of illicit drugs.  Effective 
January 1, 2006, the Act was changed to implement amendments 
to EU regulations made in August 2005.  Under the EU 
regulations, which meet the chemical control provisions of 
the 1988 UN Drug Convention, a comprehensive system of 
permits or declarations for the export and import of 
regulated chemicals has been implemented in Germany.  The 
Federal Institute for Pharmaceuticals and Medical Products 
(BfArM) is responsible for issuing permits to companies that 
import or export certain precursor chemicals, registering 
them, and providing the International Narcotics Control Board 
(INCB) and the European Commission with information on the 
licit trade of precursor chemicals.  In May 2006, a leading 
member of the BfArM was elected as a member of the INCB. 
 
Law Enforcement.  Customs authorities control the import, 
export, and transit of precursor chemicals at the Germany,s 
borders.  The Federal Office for Criminal Investigation and 
the Federal Office of Customs Investigation have a very 
active Joint Precursor Chemical Unit, based in Wiesbaden, 
devoted exclusively to chemical diversion investigations. 
They have a close relationship with the 
chemical/pharmaceutical industry and companies.  These 
private sector entities are responsible for notifying law 
enforcement of any suspicious activity that could indicate an 
illicit use of chemicals.  As noted above, in 2005, eight 
illegal labs were seized. 
International Cooperation.  Germany is in the forefront of 
international cooperation in chemical control.  It developed 
and promoted the concept that led to Operation Purple and was 
one of the leaders in the organization of Operation Topaz. 
It strongly supports the INCB,s Project Prism that 
concentrates on stricter tracking of trade in chemicals and 
equipment required for synthetic drug manufacturer.  German 
chemical control officials and DEA counterparts maintain a 
close working relationship.  A senior DEA Diversion 
Investigator in DEA,s Frankfurt Country Office is assigned 
to the Joint Precursor Chemical Unit, working on chemical 
issues of concern to both countries.  The arrangement allows 
for the real-time exchange of information.  German and U.S. 
delegations regularly support joint positions on chemical 
control in multilateral meetings such as the Commission on 
Narcotic Drugs.  Information exchange during special 
operations has also been excellent. 
TIMKEN JR