BAGHDAD, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani said Monday that the drug problem significantly contributes to regional instability and called for international cooperation to combat this threat.
Al-Sudani made his remarks at the opening of the 2nd Baghdad International Conference on Countering Narcotics, attended by interior ministers and drug enforcement agencies from nine Arab and regional countries, according to a statement by al-Sudani's media office.
"Drugs and psychotropic substances are a primary factor in the instability of the region," al-Sudani said, adding that the cooperation between terrorism and drug gangs aims to create isolated areas outside the control of the law.
"The goal of drugs and terrorism is to spread conflict and expand areas of violence, producing extremism and more refugees," al-Sudani said.
Al-Sudani called for cooperation and coordination to confront the drug threat, saying "By unifying efforts and enhancing joint coordination, we can achieve the desired goal of drug-free societies."
Iraqi Interior Minister Abdul Amir al-Shammari told reporters on the sidelines of the conference that Iraq took many procedures and plans to chase drug traffickers, stressing that the security forces have arrested the most wanted drug dealers in the country.
The chaos and conflicts that have engulfed Iraq since the U.S. invasion in 2003 impeded successive Iraqi governments from effectively addressing the threat of drugs.
In May 2023, al-Sudani underlined the importance of waging "a war on drugs," saying that drug trafficking remains a significant source of funding for terrorism and also thrives in the shadow of terrorism. ■
