Drug Trafficking Through Meghri Customs Is Ruled Out,Head Of Syunik

[Hovhannisian John]

DRUG TRAFFICKING THROUGH MEGHRI CUSTOMS IS RULED OUT, HEAD OF SYUNIK CUSTOMS-HOUSE SAYS

Noyan Tapan
May 10 2006

AGARAK, MAY 10, NOYAN TAPAN. The US State Department's Annual Report
on International Strategy for Fight against Drug Trafficking contains a
provision, according to which the Afghanistan-Iran-Nagorno Karabakh and
the occupied territories of Azerbaijan-Armenia-Georgia-Western Europe
direction is a drug trafficking route, which is not substantiated
at all. Borik Sargsian, Head of Syunik Regional Customs-House of the
State Customs Committee adjunct to the RA government "sees no grounds
for making such an accusation." He stated this in an interview to
the regional newspaper "Syunats Erkir". "In my opinion, if the report
authors have real grounds, they should have produced some particular
facts so that all this would not create an impression of downright
statement," B. Sargsian said. According to him, the fight against
drug trafficking at this customs point, which is the only one on
the Armenian-Iranian border, is being conducted by joint efforts of
customs officials, border guards, employees of the national security
bodies and other services of the State Customs Committee. Speaking
about drug trafficking cases at the customs point over the past year,
B. Sargsian said that no such cases were registered during the first
quarter of 2006. At the same time, the head of the customs-house noted
the Armenian-Iranian border stretches for kilometers, while they are
responsible for the customs territory only.