Expert: Moldova’s Drug Crisis Can No Longer Be Hidden

Just a few years ago, drug trafficking and drug use were perceived as peripheral issues – unpleasant, certainly, but not posing a serious threat to society. Today, however, the situation looks entirely different: there is a noticeable increase in mortality among users, an expansion of supply channels, and the involvement of both young people and law enforcement structures. The state is clearly losing the fight against this problem, which can no longer be concealed behind routine statements and reports claiming that everything is “under control”. Even the figures in official statistics look alarming. In 2024, 168 officially registered drug users died in the country (for comparison, in 2018 there were 32). That is, an increase of more than fivefold in just a few years. Setting aside emotional assessments, the numbers speak for themselves: the state system of prevention, treatment, and suppression of illegal trafficking is clearly failing. At the same time, the authorities’ official rhetoric has long been detached from reality. Weekly triumphant reports about arrests are neatly packaged into press releases and presented to society as evidence of “active work”. Meanwhile, according to official data from the Republican Narcological Dispensary, more than 12,400 people are currently registered as drug-dependent. Notably, the average age of cannabis users is 25, while those using hard drugs, including injectable substances, are around 30. In essence, this is our younger generation, being poisoned amid the inaction of officials who continue to downplay and conceal the growing drug problem. It is evident that these 12,000 represent only the tip of the iceberg. After all, statistics reflect only registered cases, while drug users who have not sought medical help are not included in this picture. Given the traditionally high level of social stigma toward this category of citizens and people’s reluctance to disclose their addiction, the actual number of those involved in drug use and distribution may be significantly higher. This is directly pointed out by independent experts, but the authorities prefer to rely strictly on official indicators in order to avoid acknowledging the full severity of the situation. It is important to note that combating this phenomenon requires qualitatively different measures, as modern drug trafficking is long no longer the primitive street-level trade of the 1990s. It consists of flexible supply networks, postal schemes, concealment under legitimate goods, contactless online sales, the use of cryptocurrencies, and couriers. Moldova has already come face to face with this new reality in all its sophistication. One of the most recently identified methods of smuggling drugs was disguised as dietary supplements for weight loss, which were sent to Chisinau by post, while the suspect distributed the contents through a specialized shop in a completely legal manner. At the same time, the active spread of drugs via digital platforms is being recorded, and these platforms are accessible to anyone interested. Even prison walls are no longer a barrier to drug trafficking, judging by a recent incident involving a lawyer from Balti: having professional access to a detainee, he allegedly smuggled psychotropic substances during visits. The most dangerous aspect of the current situation is not the scale of drug use itself, but the depth to which the drug threat has penetrated the country and its institutions. If a police officer protects a drug dealer, if an official turns a blind eye to an online drug platform, if state bodies react only after widespread public outcry, it means that the system itself begins to work against society and loses its capacity for self-protection. At that point, drugs cease to be merely a cross-border threat and become an internal disease of the state, which is precisely what is being observed in Moldova today. Perhaps the most disheartening case occurred the week before last, when police officers in the capital were detained on suspicion of providing protection for drug trafficking. Even more alarming is the authorities’ reluctance to acknowledge their responsibility. In practice, none of the senior leadership has assumed even a minimal share of blame, offered society any clear explanations, or taken responsibility through resignations—even at the middle management level. Against this backdrop, questions have also been raised about the president, who signs pardons for individuals convicted of drug-related offences. Many politicians and public figures have noted that such decisions were taken without proper verification of the beneficiaries’ biographies and current status. A case in point is that of a convicted drug trafficker transferred from Russia and presented as a victim of human trafficking. Maia Sandu granted him a pardon in 2022. Yet nearly four years later, it emerged that this individual was a member of an organized criminal group suspected of preparing murders in Ukraine. It creates the impression that the authorities are reacting to events in a situational manner, and in such a way that the growing drug problem does not damage the political standing of PAS and Maia Sandu personally. For example, the president is scheduled today to take part in the European Political Community summit in Yerevan, but her program also includes participation in an event of the European Coalition Against Drugs. This could be interpreted as a sign of a serious approach to the problem, but, unfortunately, it appears more like a political move aimed at reducing the personal political impact of the issue on Sandu. As is well known, drug trafficking does not take into account interstate borders and, even less so, does not recognize the de facto dividing line between the right and left banks of the Dniester. Organized criminal groups operate on both sides of the river, building end-to-end logistics chains and selling their product wherever there is demand. Just last week, an organized criminal group operating in the Dubasari district was dismantled; it was engaged in the sale of hashish, marijuana, synthetic drugs, and other psychotropic substances, distributing them on both the right and left banks of the river. The seized goods are valued at approximately 75,000 lei, although the actual turnover of such groups is typically incomparably higher. Tiraspol, it appears, is proposing the establishment of a joint mechanism to combat drug-related crime, but Chisinau does not seem to be seriously considering these initiatives. The official position, presumably, refers to the impossibility of cooperation with the unconstitutional structures of the Transnistrian region, which is also associated with the risk of operational information leaks. The political logic is understandable, but from the perspective of the public interest, a more flexible approach would be required. It would seem that, at the very least at this stage, efforts to combat a common threat across the entire constitutional territory of the country should take precedence over political caution. Drugs passing through the left bank or distributed within its territory ultimately spread throughout Moldova. In such a context, the refusal to coordinate effectively becomes, quite literally, a gift to drug traffickers, who skillfully exploit the fragmentation of law enforcement efforts and operate within these gaps with complete impunity. How to deal with the growing drug problem affecting the country is far from a trivial question. However, the main approaches to countering this issue have long been known. The authorities promise yet another anti-drug strategy, but experience with the implementation of such documents in Moldovan realities shows that they repeatedly remain only on paper. It nevertheless appears that, based on a classic principle of psychology, the first step should be the acknowledgment of the problem: it is necessary to stop concealing the scale of what is happening and begin speaking about it openly. The crisis faced by our country does not require prolonged study. On the contrary, it requires an immediate response, as the cost of delay is human lives.