2054 people held in China-Vietnam joint crackdown on drugs

In a sweeping joint cross-border crackdown on drugs, police from China and Vietnam have detained over 2,000 peopleand confiscated 2,383 kg of drugs.
The detained people were suspects in 1,466 cases related to drug abuse, officials said.
The two countries exchanged 28 tip-offs, with some leading to arrests of suspects at large, Wang Xiaomu, head of China's side of the operation said.
Wang said the joint clamp-down in which 2054 people were held focused on border areas, ports and airports after which the two countries shared information and launched cross-border investigations.
Residents living in border areas also contributed to arrests of suspects, he said.

"Drug crimes are rampant in the China-Vietnam border areas such as Guangxi, which borders the 'Golden Triangle' of South-East Asia," sate-run Xinhua quoted Wang as saying.

To counter the flood of drugs, China and Vietnam have paired up for unprecedented cooperation, he added.
It is the second time the two countries joined efforts to fight drug trafficking since 2014.
The crackdown, which began on September 16, will continue until November 15.
With nearly 3 million registered and proven addicts, China has witnessed ballooning drug problems for years.
The borders between Vietnam and China, are one of busiest drug routes into China, with huge amounts of heroin passing through the area, the report said.

A joint campaign between China and Vietnam last year saw more than 3,800 suspects being arrested and over 900 kilograms of drugs being seized by the police on both sides of the borders.