Drug trafficking by Russians

 Business Insider:

Russia's synthetic drug use is skyrocketing as soldiers return from Ukraine with addictions and trafficking supply routes dwindle

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Before the war, Russia served as a hub for cross-border flows of all types of illicit products, such as money, guns, drugs, and people throughout Europe and beyond. Ukraine's criminal underworld once played a key role in distribution, Galeotti said during a Monday presentation on his report.

But since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Ukrainian gangsters have suddenly "rediscovered their patriotism," Galeotti said during the presentation, and are refusing to cooperate with the Russians. Ukraine's cold shoulder coupled with the closing of land routes in countries like Finland have forced Russian gangsters to find alternative drug routes.

In order to get product out of Russia and into other parts of Europe, traffickers are increasingly turning to Belarus as a new crucial transit hub, according to the report.

Despite border controls set up throughout Europe, heroin, cocaine, and other narcotics are being smuggled out of Russia via Belarus, Galeotti said, while sanctioned items such as microchips and luxury goods are being smuggled in.

The larger criminal networks in Russia have suffered under the new dynamics, Galeotti said, but smaller gangs once relegated to the backwaters of the Belarus border are suddenly reaping in the rewards.

The war has also impacted demand for narcotics within Russia itself.

While some international drugs such as cocaine and heroin are still finding their way into the country from countries in Latin America, economic pressure on ordinary Russians' pocketbooks due to wartime sanctions has changed the game, according to the report.

Even before the war, cocaine was too expensive for most of Russian society, while the use of heroin is on the decline throughout the country, the report said.

The lack of affordable drugs coupled with unreliable trafficking routes has led to a spike in synthetic drugs throughout Russia, according to the report.

Synthetic opioids are cheaper to manufacture and more accessible for ordinary Russians, Galeotti said.
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I get the impression that Russia has changed from a major user of imported drugs to a producer of synthetic drugs for domestic consumption.  It is also exporting drugs through its allies in Belarus.