Golden Triangle

Asia’s Biggest Drug Bust In Lao

Laotian police have carried out Asia's biggest-ever single seizure of illegal drugs, finding more than 55 million methamphetamine pills in the back of a beer truck, a United Nations (UN) official confirmed Thursday.The Southeast Asian country has in recent years been a gateway for drug traffickers moving meth shipments out of Myanmar's troubled Shan state and into Thailand and beyond. On Wednesday, police stopped a truck carrying beer crates in Lao's northern province

29 October 2021
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Thailand Faces Meth Surge After Myanmar Coup

A village watchman trains his binoculars on a suspicious fishing boat - the first line of defence as Thailand braces for a fresh methamphetamine influx after a coup in neighbouring Myanmar.The kingdom's narcotics bureau has already seized more than 80 million "yaba" pills just in the past six months, a record haul partly blamed on a supply glut caused by the coronavirus pandemic.But now the United Nations (UN) warns of an even bigger deluge as Myanmar's legal economy tanks

30 March 2021
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ASEAN’s Booming Meth Trade

According to the United Nations (UN), the market for synthetic drugs, including methamphetamine (meth), continues to grow in most ASEAN member states and across Asia despite the COVID-19 pandemic."While the world has shifted its attention to the COVID-19 pandemic, all indications are that production and trafficking of synthetic drugs and chemicals continue at record levels in the region," said Jeremy Douglas of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).Drug trade in the Golden Triang

17 October 2020
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China and mastery of the Mekong

97 kilometres of rocks in Thai waters stand between Beijing and dominance over the Mekong, a mighty river that feeds millions as it threads south from the Tibetan plateau through five countries before emptying into the South China Sea.China has long wanted to dredge the riverbed in northern Thailand to open passage for massive cargo ships – and potentially military vessels.Ultimately, a link could be carved from Yunnan province thousands of kilometres south through the Mekong countries – Myan

12 January 2020
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At least 14 dead in Myanmar rebel attack

At least 14 people have been killed in ongoing fighting Thursday between Myanmar's military and rebels who mounted a series of attacks, including an unprecedented strike on an army academy, apparently in retaliation for massive drug seizures.Ethnic armed rebel groups have for decades fought against the military - and often between themselves - for land and resources in Myanmar's east.Experts say the area is now the world's largest meth-producing region, funding the complex web

16 August 2019
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300 kg meth bust in Vietnam

Vietnam police have busted a massive meth ring in a Ho Chi Minh City mansion allegedly run by a Chinese national who used a textile company as a cover for the operation, police and state media reported Thursday.Police on Wednesday stormed the luxury property in Vietnam's largest city, guarded with private security and outfitted with cameras during an hours-long raid which unearthed sacs of methamphetamine believed to have been smuggled in from Lao. Around 300 kilogrammes (kg) of

22 March 2019
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The Shocking Methamphetamine Trade In ASEAN

Porous borders and a lack of enforcement contributed to the record seizure of methamphetamine in East and Southeast Asia last year.Drug trade in the Golden Triangle – a region where the borders of Myanmar, Lao and Thailand meet – is booming thanks to an increase in transnational organised crime groups operating, manufacturing and trafficking methamphetamine and other drugs in the region, according to a recent report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).Substantial quantitie

15 March 2019
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ASEAN Roundup: January 1 - January 7, 2018

What can we expect from 2018?The ASEAN Post began the year with an in-depth review of what to expect from the region throughout 2018. The review covered aspects including capital markets, energy, environment, real estate, general elections and the Belt Road Initiative (BRI).Last year, ASEAN was touted to admit its 11th member – Timor-Leste but failed to do so. The topic of ascension to ASEAN is easy enough to understand.

7 January 2018
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