North Macedonia's Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski said today that up to 100 tons of marijuana could be seized by the end of the country's largest anti-drug operation.
"40 tons have already been seized and I wouldn't be surprised if we end up with 100 tons. On Tuesday, at the government session, we will make a decision to enter everywhere, that is, all companies that produce cannabis for medical purposes. Unfortunately, this is the result of a wrong, cartel policy that the previous SDSM and DUI government pursued," Mickoski said at a press conference.
When asked how five tons of marijuana left the country and entered Serbia, Mickoski said that he did not know that the marijuana found in Konjuh near Kruševac had arrived from North Macedonia, and that, according to him, the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MUP) did not know either.
"I don't know where you got the information that five tons left the country. How do you know it came from here? I don't know, and I don't think the Ministry of Internal Affairs knows either. In that case, one trusts the government of a neighboring country more than one's own government, and I would be very careful in conditions when the largest operation in the fight against drugs and narcotics is being carried out in Macedonia," said Mickoski.
The Prime Minister of North Macedonia stated that the seized marijuana, bottles of produced cannabis oil (semi-finished product) and biomass were seized from several legal entities engaged in the production of marijuana for medical purposes, and that, according to the investigation so far, they are the result of disrespect for the law, but that this needs to be confirmed in court proceedings.
"The law must be respected. Those who are the subject of this action did not respect it - that is what we believe. In order to finally reach a solution, the court will determine through the procedure whether they respected it or not. In the investigation we are currently conducting, we believe that they did not respect the law. We will see how this process develops further," said Mickoski.
The Ministry of Interior of North Macedonia announced yesterday that more than 40 tons of drugs were seized from medical cannabis production companies in Skopje and the eastern region of the country, but did not specify which companies were involved.
As specified, around nine tons of marijuana and more than 1.300 bottles of cannabis oil (semi-finished product) were found and seized from a legal entity in Skopje, while more than 31 tons of marijuana and biomass were seized from several companies in the eastern region.
"In coordination with the Customs Administration and the Commission for the Control of this Type of Activity of the Ministry of Health, controls were carried out on several legal entities whose main activity is the cultivation of spicy, aromatic and medicinal herbs, as well as plants used in pharmacy," the police statement said.
It is also emphasized that, in coordination with the public prosecutor from the Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime and Corruption, measures and activities are being taken to determine whether the marijuana recently seized in Serbia originates from North Macedonia.
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