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Summary:
Efforts to greatly reduce the flow of illicit drugs from abroad into the United States have so far not succeeded. Moreover, over the past decade, worldwide production of illicit drugs has increased dramatically: opium and marijuana production has roughly doubled and coca production tripled. Despite national political resolve to deal with the drug problem, inherent contradictions regularly appear between U.S. anti-drug policy and other policy goals and concerns. U.S. narcotics policy seeks reduction of the supply of illicit drugs to the United States and reduction of user demand within the United States. On the other hand, important aspects of U.S. foreign policy aim at promoting the political and economic stability of U.S. friends and allies and avoiding excessive involvement in their internal affairs. Pursuit of anti-drug goals can sometimes effect foreign policy interests and bring political instability and economic dislocation to countries where narcotics production has become entrenched economically and socially. Drug supply interdiction programs and U.S. systems to facilitate the international movement of goods, people, and wealth are often at odds. U.S. international narcotics policy requires cooperative efforts by many nations and must operate in the context of competing foreign policy goals. A major area of ongoing concern remains: how effective can international narcotics control programs be in helping to reduce U.S. domestic drug consumption? The mix of competing domestic and international pressures and priorities has produced an ongoing series of disputes within and between the legislative and executive branches concerning U.S. international drug policy. Congress in the 1988 Drug Act called for a reevaluation of that policy with a view towards formulating a broader approach. The Act requires the "drug czar" to submit a national drug control strategy to the Congress by February 1st of every year. U.S. strategy includes Andean nation programs that call for economic, military, and law enforcement assistance to Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia. P.L.106-246, "Plan Colombia," a $1.3 billion military assistance focused initiative to provide emergency supplemental narcotics assistance to Colombia, was signed into law July 13, 2000. On April 9, 2001, President Bush requested $731 in FY2002 funds for the Andean Counterdrug Initiative. Policy options addressed in this brief include: --Expansion of efforts to reduce foreign production at the source. --Expansion of interdiction and enforcement activities to disrupt supply lines. --Expansion of efforts to reduce worldwide demand. --Expansion of economic disincentives for international drug trafficking. For CRS products relevant to this subject, see CRS Issue Brief IB95025, Drug Supply Control: Current Legislation, CRS Report 98-159, Narcotics Certification of Drug Producing and Trafficking Nations: Questions and Answers, CRS Report RL30541, Colombia: U.S. Assistance and Current Legislation and CRS Report RL31016, Andean Regional Initiative (ARI): FY2002 Assistance for Colombia and Neighbors. See also: CRS Report RS20494, Ecuador: International Narcotics Control Issues.
