An annual anti-drug operation, dubbed “Kuknor 2018” (Poppy 2018), has been launched in Tajikistan.

According to the Drug Control Agency (DCA) under the President of Tajikistan,  the Operation Kuknor, involving representatives of law enforcement agencies, local authorities, ministries of agriculture and health, as well as the committee for TV and radio-broadcasting, is designed to interdict narcotics trafficking and eliminate poppy cultivation in the country. 

This annual anti-drug operation is carried out in two stages: from May 20 through August and from September 1 through November.