Authorities confiscated heroin and cocaine in the Armenian market for the first time in 1996. Armenia is a party to the 1988 UN Convention. Status of Country Drug transit is becoming a serious concern for Armenia, even though borders with Turkey are nominally closed due to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. A source in the presidential staff also theorized in 1995 that Armenia was more attractive to international drug cartels because the traditional trafficking routes via Turkey and the Balkans had been effectively closed off. The main drugs transported are opium and hashish, though heroin and cocaine recently became a focus of concern.
Traffickers smuggle drugs into Armenia by truck from Iran and Turkey.
Domestic drug appears to be limited in Armenia, and the MVD believes that the local market for narcotics is not large. The traditional drugs of choice are opium and cannabis. Hemp and opium poppy grow in the wild. A small amount is used for local native foods. Northwestern Armenia and border areas, where many military personnel are stationed, are the regions with the highest rates of drug abuse.