US president signs act to combat captagon in Syrian government areas
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – US President Joe Biden signed a massive defense spending bill into law on Dec. 23 that includes a proposal to combat trade of captagon in the areas controlled by the Syrian government.
The US president approved military spending of nearly $858 billion for the upcoming year – roughly 10 percent more than the year before, as lawmakers look to account for inflation and boost the nation’s military competitiveness with China and Russia.
Included in the wide-ranging bill was a proposal to target the alleged production and export of captagon, an amphetamine, by the Syrian government.
The H.R. 6265 Captagon Act, as the bill is officially known included a requirement for the US government to formulate a strategy “to target the Assad regime’s use of the trade,” which analysts say has provided it with millions of dollars in funding.
The bill requires US agencies to develop a strategy to disrupt and dismantle the production and trafficking of the drug.
It also asks that the US support its allies in the region dealing with the smuggling of captagon into their territories.
The bill was proposed by the House Foreign Affairs Committee in July and approved by the House of Representatives in September.
The Senate passed the defense policy bill earlier this month by a vote of 83-11, with broad bipartisan support.
The story of captagon in Syria dates back to the early years of the decade-long conflict, as the Syrian government used to give the drug to its soldiers to boost their fighting mood and addict them to battles, according to a report published by the Arab News in October.
The drug’s production, which takes place at small factories that are not properly equipped for this purpose, is expected to generate between $6 and $8 billion annually. If so, this would be the most profiting export for the government.