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Viewing cable 07BELGRADE1647, Serbia: 2007-2008 International Narcotics Control Strategy

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
07BELGRADE1647 2007-12-11 14:43 2011-08-26 00:00 UNCLASSIFIED Embassy Belgrade
VZCZCXRO8901
OO RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN
RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHBW #1647/01 3451443
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 111443Z DEC 07
FM AMEMBASSY BELGRADE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 1870
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC 1400
RUFOADA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK
RHMFISS/CDR USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BELGRADE 001647 
 
SIPDIS 
 
INL FOR J LYLE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O.12958: N/A 
TAGS: SNAR SR
SUBJECT: Serbia: 2007-2008 International Narcotics Control Strategy 
Report (INCSR) Part I: Drugs and Chemical Control 
 
REF: STATE 136780 
 
ΒΆI. Summary 
 
The Republic of Serbia is a major transit country for narcotics and 
other drugs along the Balkan smuggling corridor from Turkey to 
Central and Western Europe.  In 2007, Serbia took measures to 
improve its capacity to combat drug trafficking through new laws and 
law enforcement initiatives that tightened the regulations on 
narcotics, corruption, and organized crime, and included legislation 
authorizing asset seizure.  Serbia's drug laws are adequate, but the 
judicial system is weak and implementation is problematic.  While 
Serbia realized record-setting successes with drug interdictions and 
seizures, nonetheless, organized crime groups still exploited 
Serbia's inadequate border controls and law enforcement to transfer 
heroin, cocaine, marijuana, and synthetic drugs.  A small amount of 
smuggled narcotics remains in Serbia for domestic consumption.  As 
Yugoslavia's successor state, the Republic of Serbia is party to the 
1988 UN Drug Convention. 
 
II. Status of Country 
 
Serbia is a transit country for the movement of narcotics, but the 
ability of organized crime groups to exploit the porous borders and 
weak judicial structures threatens public safety and the integrity 
of public institutions.  The Ministry of Interior's (MUP) Drug 
Smuggling Suppression Department notes that Serbia's southwestern 
Sandzak region, located between Montenegro and Kosovo and on the 
heroin smuggling route connecting Afghanistan to Western Europe, is 
the most problematic area in the country for narcotics trafficking. 
The Sandzak, nicknamed Europe's "heroin stash" by narcotics experts, 
continues to be a storage site for large quantities of narcotics. 
According to the MUP, drug smugglers frequently use Serbia's 
highways -- especially Corridor 10, which runs southeast to north 
from Bulgaria and Macedonia to Croatia and Hungary.  The Serbian 
government estimates that relatively small amounts of narcotics 
remain in the country for domestic consumption.  Heroin is by far 
the most prevalent narcotic, although this year the MUP has seen an 
increase in trafficking of cocaine, from Albania, Montenegro, and as 
far away as South Africa. 
 
III. Country Actions against Drugs in 2007 
 
Policy Initiatives:  In November 2007, Serbia's State Prosecutor 
announced the creation of a special team to draft a law on asset 
seizure to increase law enforcement authorities' ability to combat 
narcotics smuggling, organized crime, and corruption.  Articles 246 
and 247 of the General Crime law regulate penalties for conviction 
for drug crimes, including production, trafficking, and usage of 
narcotics.  A newly implemented law on Chemical Substance and 
Production for synthetic drugs, based on European standards, 
requires the Ministry of Health to monitor precursor chemicals used 
by companies operating in Serbia.  The law allows the MUP to 
investigate possible misuse of precursor chemicals by companies or 
individuals.  Serbia hosts counter narcotics liaison officers from 
Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Italy, and other countries; a program 
the MUP credits for improving regional counter narcotics 
coordination. 
 
Law Enforcement Efforts and Accomplishments:  The MUP's Drugs 
Smuggling Suppression Department is Serbia's key coordination body 
for combating drug-related crime.  The Department is responsible for 
coordinating cooperation and information exchanges with 33 police 
precincts located throughout Serbia, as well as with the Customs 
Administration, the Ministry of Justice, and Interpol.  The Drug 
Smuggling Department is currently developing a database for crimes, 
arrests, and seizures related to heroin, cocaine, marijuana, 
synthetic drugs, and chemical precursors.  Officers in the MUP 
participate in workshops organized by the OSCE, the Southeast Europe 
Cooperative Initiative's (SECI) Center for Combating Trans-border 
Crime, and other international organizations.  MUP officials hope to 
continue participating in regional training exercises with 
neighboring countries including Bulgaria, Romania, Montenegro, 
Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Croatia.  The Ministry is involved in 
"train-the-trainer" programs. 
 
Serbia interdicted a record amount of narcotics in 2007.  In 
October, the Serbian Customs Administration seized approximately 163 
kg of heroin at a Serbia-Bulgaria border crossing.  The drugs were 
found in a false compartment of a truck, likely originating in 
Afghanistan, bearing Turkish plates, with a Turkish driver.  The 
vehicle was hauling a cargo of furniture and appliances under 
diplomatic cover, with destinations of Austria, France, and 
Netherlands.  Members of Serbia's border crossing team had received 
training and equipment from the Export and Related Border Security 
(EXBS) program. 
 
 
BELGRADE 00001647  002 OF 003 
 
 
Serbia's MUP and Customs Administration both keep data on total 
seizures.  The MUP reports that from January to November of 2007 
Serbian law enforcement made 3,795 drug seizures, including 11 kg of 
cocaine, 377 kg of heroin, and 700 kg of marijuana.  These data do 
not include seizures from municipal police, but do include the 
Customs Administration's reports of seizures at the border. 
Serbia's Customs Administration reports that, in the first 11 months 
of 2007, its border officials intercepted 42.2 kg of opium, 203 kg 
of heroin, 2.5 kg of cocaine, 136 kg of marijuana, and 57,460 
tablets of anabolic steroids at Serbian border crossings.  MUP and 
Customs officials both admit the need for close cooperation and 
better data consolidation. 
 
Corruption:  Corruption within Serbia's law enforcement agencies 
responsible for counter narcotics remains a serious problem. 
According to a reputable June 2007 report by a Norwegian research 
institute (Chr. Michelsen Institute's "Serbia 2007: Overview of 
Problems and Status of Reforms"), corruption in Serbia's legal 
system including police, prosecutors and courts, "distorts the 
enforcement of the law and by implication undermines trust in the 
law and justice system itself."  The report also notes that law 
enforcement officials "are subject to systematic incentives to 
engage in corrupt behavior... [and] police officers are often poorly 
remunerated, their actions are difficult to monitor, and police 
organizational culture often tends to protect corrupt officers."  An 
official at the Customs Administration said poor pay for its border 
inspectors aggravates this problem. 
 
No evidence exists that the Serbian government encourages illicit 
production or distribution of narcotics, or actively launders 
proceeds from illegal drug transactions.  Sentencing for drug law 
violations is generally weak.  According to a Justice Ministry 
report, of the 8,658 persons convicted for violations of Article 246 
of the Penal Code in 2007 (related to production, storage, and sale 
of narcotics) 6,141 (71%) received suspended sentences.  During the 
same period, 2,397 arrests (28%) resulted in prison sentences.  In 
the Belgrade District Court, 98% of drug arrests led to prison 
sentences.  The low conviction/jail-time rate outside Belgrade, in 
part, results from the large number of underage offenders, many of 
whom claim the drugs in their possession were for personal use. 
There are no specific drug-crime sentencing guidelines, and courts 
render judgments on a case-by-case basis.  Major narcotics dealers 
rarely appear in court in Serbia.  This is primarily because 
enforcement agencies are only beginning to grasp the "enterprise 
theory" to their criminal investigations. The result is that 
investigations are often truncated, focusing on the "low-lying 
fruit": users, street dealers and border seizures instead of 
following the financial proceeds back to the major dealers. This is 
slowly changing and is best evidenced in Serbia's increasingly more 
comprehensive (albeit non-drug-related) organized crime cases. The 
Republic of Serbia is a party to the 2003 UN Convention against 
Corruption. 
 
Agreements and Treaties:  Serbia became the legal successor state to 
the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro on June 3, 2006.  All 
international treaties and agreements continue in force, including 
the 1988 UN Drug Convention, the 1961 UN Single Convention as 
amended by the 1972 Protocol, the 1971 UN Convention on Psychotropic 
Substances, and the UN Convention against Transnational Organized 
Crime, and its protocols against trafficking in persons and migrant 
smuggling.  Serbia currently has a bilateral agreement with Romania 
for counter narcotics interdiction training, and has cooperative 
agreements with Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia, and Herzegovina on 
issues relating to cross-border narcotics transfers.  The 1902 
extradition treaty between the United States and the Kingdom of 
Serbia remains in force between the U.S. and Serbia. 
 
Drug Flow/Transit:  Serbia sits directly on the Balkan narcotics 
trafficking route.  It is estimated that 80% of the world's heroin 
travels along this route.  Heroin grown and processed in Afghanistan 
is smuggled through Turkey and Bulgaria into Serbia, and onward into 
Western Europe.  Small amounts of heroin stay in the country, but 
Serbia primarily serves as a transit point.  Cocaine from South 
America is smuggled into Serbia via Spain, Italy, and Greece, while 
synthetic drugs such as Ecstasy typically originate in the 
Netherlands and are generally used in exchanges for other narcotics, 
including heroin. 
 
Domestic Programs (Demand Reduction):  Experts from the Belgrade 
Institute on Drug Abuse have estimated that there are approximately 
60,000-80,000 drug users in Serbia.  A task force composed of the 
Ministries of Health, Education and Sport, Interior, and Justice is 
developing a National Strategy for the Fight against Drugs.  Serbia 
is currently experimenting with a demand reduction program in 
prisons that offers privileges to inmates in exchange for abstinence 
from drugs.  A failed drug test results in expulsion from the 
program. 
 
BELGRADE 00001647  003 OF 003 
 
 
 
IV. U.S. Policy Initiatives and Programs 
 
Bilateral and Multilateral Cooperation:  The Serbian Government 
works closely with the United States and EU countries to reform and 
improve its law enforcement and judicial capacity.  The United 
States has provided extensive technical assistance and equipment 
donations to the police, customs services, and judiciary.  Several 
USG agencies have programs that directly or indirectly support 
counter narcotics activities in Serbia, including the Department of 
Justice (ICITAP), Department of Homeland Security, Department of 
Defense, Department of the Treasury, and Department of State.  The 
Departments of State and Justice have also been instrumental in 
supporting the new Organized Crime Court and the new Special Court 
for Organized Crime and War Crimes.  The programs are aimed at 
professionalizing the police and customs services, improving the 
ability of Serbia to prosecute corruption and organized crime, 
including money laundering and illicit trafficking, and increasing 
the ability of the judiciary to effectively address serious crime. 
 
 
The Road Ahead:  The United States will continue to support the 
efforts of Serbian law enforcement to combat narcotics smuggling in 
the region.  During the next year the United States would like to 
see additional progress in Serbian justice sector reform, including 
tougher sentences for major narcotics dealers and coordinated 
efforts to combat organized crime.  Serbia needs to improve its 
demand reduction programs.  To stem the flow of narcotics through 
the Western Balkans, the United States should continue to assist 
Serbia in improving the skill set and professionalism of its law 
enforcement agencies.  Training we have provided to date has paid 
off:  In the past year, Serbian law enforcement cocaine seizures 
increased nearly 70% -- from 6.5 to 11kg, and heroin interdictions 
hit record levels.  More training and technical assistance in 
cocaine smuggling abatement techniques would be useful.  The Serbian 
Customs Administration praised the International Railroad 
Interdiction Training (IRIT) that its officers had received in El 
Paso, Texas, and expressed an interest in additional training of 
this type.  The Ministry of Interior specified a need for cocaine 
detection training opportunities for counter narcotics officials, 
technical equipment and materiel, operational assistance (including 
vehicles appropriate for law enforcement work), and improved 
intelligence coordination between Serbian police and the U.S. Drug 
Enforcement Agency. 
 
MUNTER