News:1996-02-22/Policy/president-clinton-adds-cambodia-to-us-major-illicit-drug-producing-transit-countries-list

Cambodia·

President Clinton adds Cambodia to US major illicit drug producing/transit countries list

President Clinton formally added Cambodia to the US list of major illicit drug producing and drug transit countries under Section 490(h) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961. The letter cited "numerous indicators that the heroin trafficking problem in Cambodia is severe," including a 71 kg heroin seizure in a speedboat in Koh Kong province (August 11, 1995) — the largest ever in Cambodia — and West African traffickers admitting to smuggling heroin to the US. The letter noted narcotics-related corruption involving Cambodian military, police, government, and business circles. Notably, the letter focused almost entirely on HEROIN transit rather than cannabis production, despite Cambodia being a major global cannabis producer. A separate section acknowledged that countries cultivating over 5,000 hectares of cannabis qualified as "major illicit drug producing countries" under FAA 481(e)(2), but Cambodia was listed as a transit country for heroin, not as a cannabis producer.

Source: https://clintonwhitehouse6.archives.gov/1996/02/1996-02-22-major-illicit-drug-producing-and-transit-countries.html