Elnur T. Mekhdiev

Drug trafficking is one of the main problems in Central Asia, and addressing it requires huge efforts. However, the efficiency of these efforts is doubtful, since the more effort, the more adaptive drug trafficking becomes. In Central Asia, this problem is associated with both historical prerequisites and the socio-economic situation in the region. This article discusses drug trafficking in Central Asia as an economic phenomenon and identifies the key factors that enable public policy to be more efficient in this field. The authors have analyzed the main strategy for the development of Central Asian countries and the development of synergistic actions system for developed economies (the main consumers of Afghan drugs), which may contribute to a significant reduction in drug trafficking. The major contribution of the article is in the analysis of existing and possible new routes of drug trafficking and the development of an index to assess the country's attractiveness for drug traffickers. The authors have identified two new routes and emphasized the downward trend in the attractiveness of the traditional Northern route. The novelty of the article lies in the developed conceptual models: drug circle; upstream – midstream – downstream drug trafficking; the Index of Drug Trafficking Attractiveness.