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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 TASHKENT 000601 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV SNAR KCRM PHUM KCOR ASEC TI UZ
SUBJECT: UZBEKISTAN:  NARCOTICS SEIZURES NOW REGULARLY HIGHLIGHTED IN 
STATE-CONTROLLED MEDIA 
 
REF: 08 TASHKENT 1163 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY 
 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  This is the first of planned regular updates 
about narcotics seizures publicized in the Uzbek state-controlled 
mass media.  Emboffs have noted a substantial increase recently in 
the number of articles and television news reports highlighting 
narcotics-related arrests and seizures.  While the National Center 
for Drug Control has always provided the Embassy with its official 
statistics for inclusion in the annual International Narcotics 
Control and Strategy Report (INCSR) Volume 1, the reports in the 
media provide some interesting context about individual narcotics 
seizures.  A recurrent theme in the reports is to reinforce the 
Government of Uzbekistan's complaints that Afghan drugs enter the 
country via Tajikistan, and there are liberal references to "Tajik 
accomplices" who tempt Uzbeks into perpetrating drug crimes. 
Another common denominator is the reference to arrests involving 
Surkhandarya residents, the strategic southernmost province that 
shares a rugged border with Tajikistan, a well-defended river 
border with Afghanistan, and a desert border with Turkmenistan. 
While Uzbekistan seems genuinely alarmed by the flow of 
Afghan-origin narcotics, it has been reluctant to accept an Embassy 
proposal to establish a Counternarcotics Section under the 
direction of accredited DEA Agents.  End summary. 
 
 
 
Drug Seizures Now Common in the Press 
 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
 
 
¶2. (U) The Embassy counted more than 50 narcotics-related articles 
in the press clips during the first quarter of 2009, which includes 
some BBC Monitoring-produced reports or summaries of national 
television broadcasts.  Not long ago Uzbekistan refused to 
acknowledge that narcotics use or trafficking was a serious problem 
but, consistent with frank conversations with high-level visitors 
over the past year about the surge in narcotics emanating north 
from Afghanistan, public reports about arrests now appear several 
times per week.  This report summarizes publicly reported 
information from January - March, 2009, and we will continue to 
track and regularly report narcotic seizures. 
 
 
 
Reports Focus on Trafficking Via the Tajik Border 
 
--------------------------------------------- --------------- 
 
 
 
¶3. (U) On January 17, Uzbek Television First Channel aired a 
26-minute segment on drug trafficking, noting "of late, Uzbek law 
enforcement agencies have been uncovering frequent attempts to 
smuggle drugs from Tajikistan to Uzbekistan."  It went on to 
describe a bust at the Tashkent Airport by the National Security 
Service (NSS) in conjunction with Customs officers of a criminal 
group from the Uzbek border town of Bekobod which shuttled drugs to 
Moscow.  Women were typically used as mules, it reported, because 
they are not searched as thoroughly.  A Tajik national was 
reportedly behind the scheme and recruited Uzbeks looking for easy 
money in tough financial times.  "It is known that Tajik drug 
dealers are attempting to set up a permanent drug transit route via 
our country and regularly use it," the anchor lamented, adding that 
"the worst thing is that they still keep involving our fellow 
countrymen living in border areas in this job and pursuing their 
goals using their services." 
 
 
 
¶4. (U) Press reported on January 17 that two brothers were 
 
TASHKENT 00000601  002 OF 005 
 
 
convicted of selling 16.7 grams of heroin in the Denov District of 
Surkhandarya Province. 
 
 
 
¶5. (U) Uzbek Television First Channel aired a story on January 20 
about a 22-kilo heroin seizure in southeastern Uzbekistan (probably 
Surkhandarya).  It noted the drugs "belonged to a Tajik national" 
but were seized from two Surkhandarya residents and that the 
narcotics "were smuggled  through the back roads from neighboring 
Tajikistan." 
 
 
 
¶6. (U) The newspaper Tashkent Mahalla reported on January 21 that a 
"dangerous organized criminal group" of 18 people (including 11 
women) in Khorezm Province was convicted of drug crimes.  It 
reportedly had operated since 2002 and sold heroin around 
Uzbekistan as well as Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan.  Five 
ringleaders - all relatives - were sentenced to prison terms of 
13-18 years. 
 
 
 
¶7. (U) The Ministry of Internal Affairs newspaper Na Postu reported 
on January 24 that 500 grams of narcotics was discovered in a 
baby's diaper during a search on a bus from Tashkent to Nukus.  The 
offenders were from Urgut in Samarkand Province. 
 
 
 
¶8. (U) On February 3 the Uzbek Television First Channel broadcast 
that another resident of Urgut was arrested in Bukhara at one of 
many routine traffic checkpoints after three packages of heroin 
were found in the car's heating system totaling over 1.5 kilograms. 
The suspect admitted he "received the drugs from a Tajik citizen" 
and was instructed to deliver the drugs to a contact in the Urgench 
bazaar.  Another Nexia automobile was stopped in Navoiy, where 
sniffer dogs uncovered 2.5 kg of opium on the driver and another 2 
kilos in luggage.  This driver also confessed that "Tajik citizens 
handed it over to him." 
 
 
 
¶9. (U) On February 7 the same channel aired another narcotics 
seizure report, this time involving an Afghan citizen who was 
arrested with 10 kilograms of opium on the southern border.  The 
Balkh resident apparently tried to smuggle the drugs across the 
river, which has been heavily guarded since Soviet times.  The NSS, 
Border Guards, and Customs conducted the operation on January 29 at 
11PM. 
 
 
 
¶10. (U) On February 8 the Uzbek Television First Channel reported 
that a Nexia sedan was stopped at the Chandir checkpoint in the 
Romitan District of Bukhara Province by NSS and MVD officers.  A 
search revealed that 9.5 kilograms of heroin was stashed in bags on 
the underside of the car, along with 200 grams of opium.  A 
Tashkent Province man was driving, and reported "the drugs were 
hidden by a Tajik accomplice."  This shipment was also apparently 
bound for Urgench in the country's northwest. 
 
 
 
¶11. (U) Surkhandarya TV reported on February 13 that an Afghan 
national crossed the river border near Termez in a boat on the 
night of January 29 in possession of 19 kilos of opium. 
 
 
 
¶12. (U) On February 15 the Uzbek Television First Channel reported 
a 23-kg seizure on February 9 in the town of Denov, Surkhandarya 
Province.  First officers arrested three locals attempting to sell 
350 grams of heroin, which in turn led them to another man and a 
bigger seizure.  Again, officials "established that the drugs had 
 
TASHKENT 00000601  003 OF 005 
 
 
been smuggled from Tajikistan into our country."  Authorities also 
confiscated 2 kilos of hashish and plastic capsules designed for 
ingesting drugs in the stomach.  (Note:  This also highlights that 
Uzbek investigators are trying to build on small finds and go after 
the supplier.  End note.) 
 
 
 
¶13. (U) On February 18 the Uzbek Television First Channel again 
aired a drug trafficking story with a heavy anti-Tajik message, 
with the commentator stating "our country is fighting to terminate 
drug trafficking, especially transit routes for Tajik heroin. 
Unfortunately, there are still cases where fellow compatriots 
become involved in drug trafficking by dancing to the Tajik drug 
dealers' tune, motivated by greed."  It went on to describe that on 
February 10, a Bekobod resident was arrested with 1 kilo of heroin 
and had been working with a Tajik accomplice.  It again mentioned 
"increasingly intensive activities of criminal groups in 
neighboring Tajikistan."  Another example was given of a Tajik 
national who was caught with nearly a kilogram of heroin in a 
cellophane bag.  The story proceeded to shame a teacher in 
Sariosiyo District of Surhandarya who was also found with a kilo of 
heroin of Tajik origin.  Finally, the report mentioned a third-time 
offending female was caught trying to sell 3.5 kilos of heroin in 
Denov after smuggling it from Tajikistan. 
 
 
 
¶14. (U) The regional paper "Namangan Diyonat" reported on February 
19 that police had uncovered 15 cases of drug trafficking in 
January alone in Namangan, including 1.5 kilos of marijuana. 
 
 
 
¶15. (U) The Russian Internet news agency Regnum reported on 
February 24 that a retired colonel from the Kyrgyz security 
services was arrested for smuggling and selling large quantities of 
drugs in Namangan Province, Uzbekistan.  The NSS linked him after 
initially arresting a local man with 225 grams of hashish, who 
identified the former officer as a supplier.  He was subsequently 
arrested on his next visit to the country. 
 
 
 
¶16. (U) On February 25 another instance was reported of an Afghan 
trying to illegally cross into Uzbekistan with 25 kilos of opium in 
a sack near the Amu Darya River.  The man confessed that financial 
difficulties compelled him to get involved in drug trafficking. 
 
 
 
¶17. (U) The Uzbek television show "Axborot" News reported on 
February 26 about 14 arrests in a raid in the Yangiyol District of 
Tashkent Province on February 1 
 
 
 
¶18. (U) The small regional paper "Termez Oqshomi" reported on 
February 16 that an Afghan national was sentenced to 19 years in 
prison for smuggling 27 kilos of opium into Uzbekistan in two sacks 
while in possession of an AK-47 assault rifle. 
 
 
 
¶19. (U) On March 3 a large 107-kilo heroin seizure was made in 
Russia that had been transported on a train originating in Kokand, 
Uzbekistan, according to Interfax. 
 
 
 
¶20. (U) The newspaper "Tashkent Huquq" on March 5 reported that a 
27-year old Uzbek Customs officer from Surkhandarya Province was 
sentenced to 20 years in prison for drug trafficking.  He was 
arrested by the NSS with 715 grams of heroin; subsequent checks of 
his home revealed four white plastic sacks buried in the yard 
containing 139 kilos of opium.  He was formerly an inspector at the 
 
TASHKENT 00000601  004 OF 005 
 
 
Galaba Customs checkpoint, which is a strategic railhead in the 
country's far south where train tracks from Afghanistan and 
Tajikistan converge.  It is an encouraging sign that the Uzbek 
Government is willing to prosecute corrupt officials after its 2008 
adoption of the UN Convention Against Corruption.  (Note:  The 
arrest and seizure date were not specified, but were probably in 
the fall of 2008). 
 
 
 
¶21. (U) On March 11 there was yet another report that in Denau in 
Surkhandarya, 27 bags containing 25 kilos of drugs were found in a 
basement.  Again, it mentions that "a Tajik resident" delivered the 
shipment. 
 
 
 
¶22. (U) "Tashkent Hayot" reported on March 13 that a Tashkent 
mother of five was sentenced to 13 years in prison for smuggling 
heroin from Tajikistan and attempting to sell 840 grams in the 
Uzbek capital. 
 
 
 
¶23. (U) The Uzbek Television First Channel reported on March 16 
that a Kazakhstan-bound vehicle was stopped in Tashkent Province 
after attempting to bypass a checkpoint.  The vehicle was filled 
with fresh herbs as a diversion, but the boxes also contained 140 
kilograms of heroin.  A group of Tajik criminals was blamed for the 
attempt to ship drugs to Russia, and it again shamed Uzbeks "who 
want to make easy money" and "lured by drug trafficking groups from 
Tajikistan."  Significantly, reports mentioned that the catch was 
partly in response to information received about the attempt, an 
indication that the Central Asian Regional Information and 
Coordination Center (CARICC) is paying dividends. 
 
 
 
¶24. (U) On March 17, Interfax reported that the Uzbek Ministry of 
Internal Affairs arrested a Surkhandarya man and woman in a Nexia 
sedan in the northwest of Uzbekistan with nine kilos of drugs 
"presumably trafficked from Tajikistan" and bound for Russia. 
(Note:  A trafficker going by road across Uzbekistan to the 
northwest has to run a gauntlet of Uzbek traffic checkpoints at 
almost every township and provincial border.  End note.) 
 
 
 
¶25. (U) On March 21, Regnum News Agency of Russia reported that 
Uzbek Customs officers in Surkhandarya Province arrested a local 
resident with 12.5 kilos of heroin.  The report added that already 
since the start of 2009, the Uzbek State Customs Committee had made 
30 drug trafficking busts and seized 87 kilos of hard drugs.  This 
is in addition to seizures made by the Interior Ministry, Border 
Guards, and National Security Service. 
 
 
 
Drug Charges Can Also be Politically Motivated 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
 
 
 
¶26. (SBU) While the vast majority of press clips are probably 
genuine stories of drug trafficking, there were also reports about 
prominent journalist Salidjahon Abdurakhmanov, who was sentenced to 
10 years in prison in remote northwestern Karakalpakstan Province 
on what we believe to be politically motivated drug charges 
(reftel).  Authorities initially charged him with possession of 
drugs and then altered the investigation to charge him with intent 
to sell.  Thus, while we welcome Uzbekistan's efforts to address a 
drug problem that we concur is getting more serious as a result of 
increased narcotics production in Afghanistan, we remain concerned 
that Uzbek authorities are willing to use narcotics charges as a 
pretense for imprisoning journalists or activists.  Activists have 
 
TASHKENT 00000601  005 OF 005 
 
 
reported that this case is not the first such instance, as 
authorities have allegedly planted narcotics on activists and 
journalists as a means of discrediting them and handing down 
lengthy prison terms. 
 
 
 
Comment: 
 
-------------- 
 
 
 
¶27. (SBU) The press reports illustrate some encouraging trends in 
counternarcotics activities, although we are still at a loss to 
explain why Uzbekistan has not accepted - or even responded to - 
our proposal to establish a Counternarcotics Section which would be 
administered by two openly accredited DEA Agents.  Uzbekistan would 
appear to have everything to gain and nothing to lose in 
cooperating more closely with the U.S. Government through DEA, but 
there may be powerful factions within the Uzbek Government with 
entrenched interests in keeping the U.S. and DEA Agents at bay.  It 
is also noteworthy that relations with Tajikistan have actually 
thawed recently, with progress on border demarcation and even talk 
of resuming air links between the capitals, yet Tajikistan is still 
blamed much more than Afghanistan for the mostly Afghan-origin 
narcotics that penetrate Uzbek territory.  Due to the heavy 
controls on the direct border with Afghanistan, international 
observers including at the UN Office on Drugs and Crime agree that 
a majority of narcotics enter Uzbekistan from the long, rugged, and 
often porous border with Tajikistan to the east. 
NORLAND