Pubdate: Tue, 19 Sep 2006
Source: Hill, The (US DC)
Copyright: 2006 The Hill
Contact:  http://www.hillnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1509
Author: Roxana Tiron

KEY HOUSE GOP MEMBERS SUPPORT DEM ANTI-NARCOTIC MEASURE

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) may not have expected his $700 million
amendment to the defense-spending bill to pass; Democratic amendments
are usually shot down one by one.

But the senator's proposal to allocate money for narcotics eradication
in Afghanistan passed by voice vote in early September.

It won the vote of the Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John
Warner (R-Va.) among others, and has support from several key GOP
members in the House.

One is Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.), chairman of the Government Reform
subcommittee with jurisdiction over drug policy, who admitted on the
House floor last week that he is "not always a big ally of Sen. Schumer."

"But," he added, "we need to back his amendment here. He is right. We
need a unified campaign like in Colombia where drugs and terror are
treated the same way."

Five lawmakers are now working to convince House appropriators to
agree to the $700 million in conference negotiations. The House's 2007
defense appropriations bill does not contain such a measure.

Several lawmakers, in a letter last week to the senior House
appropriators, expressed their frustration over the failing
counter-narcotics efforts in Afghanistan. Signing the letter were
Reps. Tom Davis (R-Va.), chairman of Government Reform Committee;
Henry Hyde (R-Ill.), chairman of the International Relations
Committee; Souder, chairman of the Government Reform Criminal Justice,
Drug Policy and Human Resources subcommittee; Dan Burton (R-Ind.),
chairman of the International Relations Western Hemisphere
subcommittee; and Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), a member of the Appropriations
Foreign Operations subcommittee.

According to a recent report from the United Nations Office on Drugs
and Crime, the cultivation area of Afghanistan's opium crop is 59
percent bigger this year than last -- 165,000 hectares compared to
104,000.

"This crop produced 92 percent of the world's opiates and exceeded
global consumption by an astounding 30 percent," the lawmakers wrote
to House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jerry Lewis (R-Calif.),
ranking member David Obey (D-Wis.), Defense Appropriations
Subcommittee Chairman Bill Young (R-Fla.) and subcommittee ranking
member John Murtha (R-Pa.).

The problem is particularly acute in the southern provinces and in
particular, Helmand. "Afghanistan's government is rife with corruption
and unable to exert enough influence throughout the country to stem
the rising opium tide," the lawmakers wrote. Drug profits have fueled
a resurgence of Taliban violence threatening the country's fledgling
democracy, the five GOP members said.

They are urging the appropriators to redirect money to target drugs
and terror in Afghanistan.

Several critics say the U.S. Central Command has done very little to
handle transnational threats, such as drug trafficking.

"The primary mission for U.S. forces in Afghanistan is a combat
mission to destroy al Qaeda and Taliban remnants," said Marine Corps
Capt. Danny Chung, a CENTCOM spokesperson. "U.S. troops are not
involved in [drug] eradication; this includes aerial spraying of poppy
fields. However, if U.S. troops come across narcotics during the
course of a mission, they are permitted to confiscate and/or destroy
them then report their actions."

The United Kingdom has the lead in counter-narcotics operations in
Afghanistan, and the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of
International Narcotics and Law Enforcement leads the U.S. effort,
Chung explained.

"The production and trafficking of illegal narcotics remain a
significant threat not only to Afghanistan's long-term stability, but
to the stability of the entire region," he said. "The campaign to stop
trafficking and end poppy production is complex, requiring interagency
and international participation, particularly given the regional scope
of the problem."

CENTCOM's roles include intelligence support, helicopter transport,
logistical and administrative assistance for counter-narcotics
operators in country, rescue and close air support operations.
Provincial reconstruction teams also play a role developing economic
alternatives to poppy production.

A House GOP aide said, "We are looking for partners who understand the
role between narcotics and terrorism, such as the State department,
the DEA. CENTCOM is not an enthusiastic partner."

The aide explained that Schumer's amendment would direct money toward
drug eradication, something that the U.S. military does not want to
do.

The lawmakers are frustrated by what they see as minimal support in
the Pentagon for counter-drug operations in Afghanistan in the past
year. The five wrote that the U.S. policy should simultaneously target
drug and terror networks.

"This dual approach achieved significant results in Colombia and it
can also work in Afghanistan," they wrote. "DoD must play a greater
role in non-eradication efforts and must be mandated to support law
enforcement efforts against narcotics traffickers in addition to
pursuing terrorist organizations."

The lawmakers suggest that the $700 million be spent mostly on
supporting the DEA, buying or leasing helicopters and gunships to
support enforcement action against drug kingpins, heroin chemists,
narcotics convoys and heroin labs.

The money would also allow the DEA to expand its human-intelligence
network as well as the capability and capacity of the DEA-trained
Narcotics Interdiction Unit and the DEA-trained special investigative
units.

The GOP aide said it is not certain that the $700 million will be
preserved in conference negotiations. Almost $400 million for
counter-drug operations in Afghanistan is already available in several
2007 spending bills.

Senate and House appropriators are fighting over a $5 billion gap
between their two versions of the bill.

Debate over counter-narcotics operations in Afghanistan comes as the
Pentagon is trying to reorganize its policy shop, a move that some
congressional leaders, including House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.)
fear would dilute the Pentagon's counter-narcotics mission even more.
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake