Fentanyl is frequently called the border crisis between the United States and Mexico, but the forces keeping it alive come from much earlier in the production chain. Synthetic opioids are made through chemical reactions that require precursors, which are then sold across the border areas in legitimate commercial networks. The scale of the crisis reflects the durability of those upstream supply structures rather than episodic trafficking events. Illustration by The Geostrata I

Drug trafficking has emerged as a profitable and lucrative business , and is often a means for terror financing. The United Nations...

Indian Ocean Region (IOR) has been a theatre of influence since ancient civilisations and holds that stature contemporarily as well. This...