- 14 Mar 2002
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Japan accuses N. Korea of ties with illegal drug trade
=> USATODAY.com - Japan accuses N. Korea of ties with illegal drug trade
"Also, Japan and North Korea have no diplomatic relations, so the Japanese government has not been able to directly press the North to crack down on drug trafficking."
The NK news agency site is hosted and maintained in Japan, so there you go: send them an email.
When the rusty fishing boat arrived from China via North Korea for an offshore rendezvous, its crew got an unwelcome surprise 窶 it was boarded and searched by the Japanese Coast Guard. Peeling back a wooden panel to reveal a hidden compartment, officers found 10 boxes containing more than 330 pounds of North Korean methamphetamines, a potent stimulant that is the illegal drug of choice for abusers in Japan. In desperate need of money to pay for its huge army and expensive nuclear and conventional weapons programs 窶 not to mention feed its people 窶 North Korea has found a lucrative source of funds in Japanese drug addicts, experts say. [...]
Methamphetamines offer an easy fix. They can be manufactured easily and cheaply and transported at little risk. Japan's coastline, slightly less than California's, is hard to guard. Latest customs figures say Japan seized 2,473 pounds of methamphetamines from North Korea in the three years through 2001. That was second to seizures from China: 3,916 pounds. "We believe North Korea is capable of mass producing top-quality stimulants," said Naoto Takeuchi, an anti-narcotics official at the National Police Agency. "There could be a government agency behind it." [...]
Also, Japan and North Korea have no diplomatic relations, so the Japanese government has not been able to directly press the North to crack down on drug trafficking.
=> USATODAY.com - Japan accuses N. Korea of ties with illegal drug trade
"Also, Japan and North Korea have no diplomatic relations, so the Japanese government has not been able to directly press the North to crack down on drug trafficking."
The NK news agency site is hosted and maintained in Japan, so there you go: send them an email.