Research Paper On Transnational Drug Trafficking

Drug cartels have arisen as a major crisis for the future in the Americas. Individuals indulge themselves on drugs for many reasons such as tradition, attempting to escape poverty, and generating revenue for rebellious activities. Drug trafficking has proven to be ludacris, with the increasing involvement of corrupt government officials in their distribution. The UN has stated the approximate estimation of profits of drug trade is roughly around $150 billion alone in the Americas, which accounts slightly less than 5% GDP. Currently the most common way of drug transport is land through Central American countries like Mexico, and it eventually crosses over the border to the United States.

Criminal organizations operating from South America smuggle cocaine and heroin into the U.S. via a number of routes.

For many years the United States has made an effort to restrict the importation of drugs. The United States has developed activities related to drug trafficking. To stop the importation of drugs, the Department of Homeland Security has gathered an estimate of $2 billion, or as Hart and Ksir (2015) states, 20 percent of its overall budget for drug control. Although there have been drug smugglers who continue to success in becoming uneducated by law enforcement, the United States is doing more to enforce drug laws and stop from importing drugs. The United States has used Air Force radicand aircraft and Navy patrol boats to detect and track aircraft and boats that might smuggle drugs into the country (Hart & Ksir, 2015).

With globalization of trade, it is simple for crimes between criminals in the U.S and other countries to occur. For example, drug dealers from one country sneaking illegal substances and other contraband into packages and ship it off to the U.S. Drug dealers think and plan this smuggling well, in attempts to successfully enter their product into the country to sell and distribute. In 2016, there were large shipments of narcotics coming from the Caribbean to areas of Southwestern U.S. The task force comprised of the U.S Coast Guard, The Drug Enforcement Administration and other agencies. This task force managed to interfere with drug smuggling from the Bahamas and denied traffickers access to do so. (Homeland Security, 2016) There are also products

South America continues to account for practically all global cultivation of coca bush, and South-West Asia (Afghanistan) and South East Asia (mainly the Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Myanmar) continue to account for the vast majority of illicit opium poppy cultivation. Although the manufacture of ATS is difficult to assess, there are reports of ATS manufacture in all regions worldwide. There may have been no major change in the regions in which illicit crop cultivation and drug manufacture take place, but the illicit drug markets and the routes along which drugs are smuggled continue to be in a state of flux. The “dark net”, the anonymous online marketplace used for the illegal sale of a wide range of products, including drugs, is a prime example of the constantly changing situation, and it has profound implications for both law enforcement and drug

dominating the drug industry are the Latin American and majority of Asian, specifically cocaine and heroin production. Global organised crime is evolving and embracing new markets and technologies; moving from the traditional hierarchies towards a more flexible, network based construct of organisation. To a certain extent, the legitimate world is a victim of its own accomplishment; the globalisation of the legal economy has globalised the underworld. This has provided the demands of numerous illicit services, and an improvement of policing ironically forcing criminals to become more organised to continue. The international organised crime groups that are working together and with an effect, dividing the globe amongst them. There is sufficient

Unfortunately for the illicit drug market, disrupt in the supply chain does not just occur during production, but can also be intercepted during transportation. According to the International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (2015), “the U.S. Coast Guard, seized one submersible and two semi-submersible vessel for transporting drugs [from Colombia]” (138). The threat of confiscation without compensation, due to drugs being a part of an illicit economy, compels traffickers to utilize more covert and inventive methods in the movement of substances. An example of a preventative measure commonly applied by organized crime groups is a monetary bribe provided to customs officers for purposefully overlooking drug smuggling across country borders, “higher levels of income inequality are also known to provoke drug trafficking and corruption… members of marginalized groups may view corruption and involvement in criminal organizations as a viable way to improve their lives” (The Drug Problem and Organized Crime, Illicit Financial Flows, Corruption, and Terrorism 33). Comparatively to members of the illicit narcotics market, individuals a part of the criminal justice system may succumb to bribery for financial gain as a result of perceived income inequality. Consequently of globalization, an enhancement of

Although Cold War may have put an end to tensions, it produced other unforeseen effects such as a significant expansion in the trafficking of illegal drugs across the in home nation’s boundaries. International travel has become easier due to the increasing technology of airports, and as basically made all nations hypothetically borderless. Even though international drug trafficking organizations (DTOs), such as the Cartel in Mexico, have never respected national boundaries, bigger markets for drug production and easier transportation of the drugs, along with increasing drug use in poor income areas, has impacted drug trafficking. Correspondingly, the universal market for drugs, and the volume of sources to provide to the drug market, is developing exponentially around the world. Once referred to as “the American disease”, Drug trafficking has now became a worldwide plague.

become evident in the last few years. More and more states are being drawn into the

There are seven forms of transnational criminality, Illicit drug trafficking, Money laundering, Infiltration of legal business, Computer crime, Illicit arms trafficking, Traffic in persons, and Destruction of cultural property (Adler, “et.al”, 2013) . Illicit drug trafficking is an extremely lucrative endeavor creating billions of dollars in benefit that terrorist organizations can without much of a stretch take advantage of. The links between international terrorist organizations and drug trafficking differs incredibly from organization to organization (Clarke, 2016). Terrorists entail cash for their operations. The drug trade gives simple access to vast assets. The Taliban have supported their terrorist undertakings activities from the boundless

The traffickers passes through porous and dangerous and remote terrains. It is almost impossible for them to pass, nature has always conspired to defeat attempts and eliminate drugs traffickers between both countries.

In this current day, we are considered to be living in the “golden age of drug trafficking”. In 2016, top officials and diplomats from governments all over the world met at the United Nations headquarters to figure out what do to about the worldwide drug trafficking problem. Over various days of the discussions, they came to the conclusion to make a more extensive advancement and approach, but continue to keep conducting the war on drugs. They developed an “outcome document” that orders countries to restrict, prevent and conflict drug related crime. This will be done by disturbing the trafficking, production, manufacturing and cultivation of drugs such as cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin and other banned substances. The UN’s data presents that the “supply-oriented” stand to battling the trafficking of drugs has ld to a consistency of failure. The data also shows that even the billions of dollars that has been spent attempting to exterminate illicit crops, seize loads of drug produce and detain traffickers has led to more worldwide drug use and production than ever. It has also been noted that while these drug treaties continue to not be changes, the pace and evolution of organized crime has been moving right beside the global economy. Progression in transportation, technology and options of travel have been an addition to the capability and productivity of the global economy. To be exact, globalization has driven and fueled this bursted outbreak of the illegal drug trade.

There are more than 200 countries involved in the trade, and more than 500 trafficking travel routes. 40 percent of countries have admitted to only few or no convictions within this line of “business”. Yet according to the head of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Yury Fedotov, no one is safe:

Drug trafficking has become an increasingly growing problem in the world today. Illegal drug trade is a worldwide black market consisting of production, distribution, packaging, and sale of illegal substances. Although today’s "War on Drugs" is a modern phenomenon, drug problems have been a common problem throughout history. The market for illegal drugs is massive, when we consider the estimated global drug trade value is worth $321 billion (Vulliamy). The most drug trafficking happens on the border between Mexico and the United States. Former Mexican President Felipe Calderon said, “Our neighbor is the largest consumer of drugs in the world. And everybody wants to sell him drugs through our door and our window”

Drug trafficking is the most common, it is defined as, “manufacturing, distributing, dispensing, or possessing with the intent to manufacture, distribute, or dispense any amount of a prohibited narcotic”(Theoharis, M., July 6,2015) Although, there isn`t a clear definition on drug trafficking for Mexico by reading the punishment, it means the same for the United States definition. In addition, to drug trafficking between the countries,drug trafficking is a felony in both countries. However,the penalties are different. In the United States, federal drug trafficking has mandatory sentences depending on the narcotic and the amount. For instance, “someone convicted of possessing with the intent to distribute 5 grams of