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Abstract:
In the year 2000 there were 50,000 drug-related deaths in the United States and the country suffered $160 billion in economic losses due to illicit drug use. The 2002 Interagency Assessment of Cocaine Movement (IACM) estimates that the annual U.S. consumption of cocaine exceeds 300 metric tons. To satisfy this demand for the illicit drug, the IACM estimates that over 500 metric tons of cocaine is shipped from South America to the United States annually. Currently, 16 million Americans use drugs and approximately six million meet the clinical criteria for needing drug treatment. In 2002, 25% of high school seniors and 10% of eighth graders reported using illegal drugs in the last month. Despite these alarming statistics, some characterize illicit drug use in America as a minor problem affecting less than 10% of the population. However, America's drug problem is much more pervasive and impacts more than just the anonymous user of illicit drugs. The international illicit drug trade generates over $400 billion in trade annually, equal to roughly 8% of global trade. Drug traffickers earn a profit margin of 300% on their investment. The cultivation, transportation, and distribution of illicit drugs are a global industry whose profits fuel international crime, global terrorism, and threaten to destabilize national governments. This strategic research project will examine the history of America's war on cocaine with a specific focus on the U.S. National Drug Control Policy and the national strategy to reduce the supply of cocaine available to American citizens, including the most current initiative, Plan Colombia. Finally, this project recommends expanding on the successes of Plan Colombia by initiating a regional effort to address the global aspects of the drug trade. (25 refs.)
| Limitations: |
 APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE |
| Description: |
Research paper |
| Pages: |
25 |
| Report Date: |
19 MAR 2004 |
| Report Number: |
A897324 |
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