Country Actions Against Drugs in 1997 Policy Initiatives . A government commission appointed last year promulgated a national program to combat drug addiction and trafficking. The plan includes proposed legislation and organizational measures, and technical requirements. The decree also instructs the Foreign Ministry to conclude counternarcotics agreements with neighboring countries and other states. Azerbaijan is drafting new narcotics legislation.
Laws already exist that criminalize drug use and trafficking.
Current legislation does not cover money laundering and is inadequate to tackle police and judicial corruption. Azerbaijan cooperates with Black Sea and Caspian Sea states in tracking and interdicting narcotics shipments, especially morphine base and heroin. Caspian Sea cooperation includes efforts to interdict narcotics transported across the Caspian Sea by ferry. Law enforcement officials report they have good cooperation with Russia but encounter considerable reluctance from Iran. The government made modest progress toward creating a national counternarcotics strategy.