Opium unifies the enemies of American interests in Afghanistan. Poppy cultivation feeds power to the Taliban, drug lords, and corrupt officials. That power grew dramatically in 2017 — up 87 percent in one year to 9,000 metric tons, according to the latest report by the U.N. Office of Drugs and Crime.

Without drugs, this war would have been long over. The heroin is a very important driver of this war.

Since the liberation of Afghanistan, U.S. and allied policy has failed to press the elimination of opium production as a necessary priority.

Economic data in Afghanistan is at best problematic, but few doubt that opium is the single biggest sector in terms of GDP and the portion of the labor force it captures. As a percentage of GDP, estimates of drug revenue vary from roughly a third to a half.

Opium distorts the economy to maintain the drug industry, turning resources away from building licit economic activity and diversification.

Read the full article on opium in Afghanistan by John P. Walters and David W. Murray at Hudson Institute