Latin America and the Multinational Drug Trade

Abstract

The illicit drug trade has an estimated annual global growth of $300-500 billion. Advances in communications technology, more liberal international trade regimes and the growth in global financial services are all contributing to its success. Latin American traffickers are in the vanguard of the drug trade, expanding production and distribution, opening up new markets in Europe, and extending their product range to include heroin as well as cocaine and marijuana. This book analyzes the profound consequences that the illicit drug trade has for millions of Latin Americans, and what they imply for domestic policy and for international cooperation.