German generals on the staff of the international occupation force ISAF have been demanding already ,,for weeks"to proceed against the production of drugs in the north of Afghanistan. The city of Kunduz, where a German ,,provincial reconstruction team"(PRT) is stationed, is considered one of the ,,most important transit points for the smuggling of raw opium."According to experts, ,,the best heroin in the world"is in the area around the city of Faizabad, where a German military field detachment is located. About two thirds of Afghanistan's gross national product is from the drug business.

The expansion of the German military commando, by way of an anti-drug campaign, had been first suggested by conservative opposition members of the German parliament. Meanwhile the CDU/CSU faction (Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union) of parliament demands that the German occupational force should not engage in ,,halfway measures"and should operate at the highest level in its measures of armed repression. Apparently in support of the projected disputes, six combat helicopters had been transferred to Afghanistan at the beginning of the month. Prior to that, the Munich firm ESG had equipped the machines with a new missile defense system. According to the press, approximately 50 members of the military elite unit KSK, will be sent to the north of the country.

The production of drugs enables the native population to earn a moderate income and be independent of foreign development aid. Because the sales bypass the state's financial system and strengthens the subsistence structure of the Afghan peasantry, they hinder western efforts to dispose of the land on the international market. The federal government engages in corresponding activities: On the initiative of the ,,Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit"(GTZ - association for technical cooperation) which is an agency of the German ministry for development aid (BMZ), the Afghan parliament has passed ,,investor friendly investment legislation;"in addition a ,,micro finance bank"and the ,,Afghan Investment Support Agency"were created to serve as the ,,only place for interested foreign investors to go."

The desired control over the Afghan national economy is not only protected by military but also political and cultural influences. According to the foreign office, Germany occupies a ,,key function"due to the development of a police apparatus. This measure is also ,,supported"by the establishment of an ,,academy for development"and the development of a ,,new administrative law"with the Max-Planck-Institute for public law and law of nations in Heidelberg in charge. The ,,Deutscher Akademisher Austauschdienst"(DAAD - German academic exchange), the Goethe-Institute and TU Berlin have taken over the development of an educational system which is compatible with western concepts. In the media realm, the official government radio station ,,Deutsche Welle"is indispensable. It provides Afghan television with the daily news in the national languages of Dari and Paschtu and administers the training of journalists. In the print media Germany has achieved considerable influence. Within the framework of a ,,public private partnership project"the GTZ and ,,Heidelberg Druckmaschinen Osteuropa Vertrieb GmbH"(HOV - Eastern European Heidelberg printing machinery company) have established a print training center in Kabul, which is considered by its investors as ,,the most modern company in Afghanistan."

The German activities of occupation are a competitive part of the western vision which intends to dissolve the traditional structures of states characterized by Islam, and wants to expose them to the ,,push toward modernization."The extent and methods of these subversive moves which target the Near and Middle East, as well as several neighboring countries of the People's Republic of China, are subject to disputes among the competitors.

1) Willi Germund: Bundeswehr könnte bald auch gegen Drogen vorgehen; Berliner Zeitung 14.02.2005
2) Pressemitteilung der CDU/CSU-Fraktion im Deutschen Bundestag; www.cducsu.de 10.02.2005
3) Besserer Schutz für Bundeswehr in Afghanistan (Pressemitteilung der ESG v. 31.01.2005); www.esg.de
4) Der Spiegel 12.01.2005
5), 6) Darstellung der deutschen Beiträge zum Wiederaufbau Afghanistans; www.auswaertiges-amt.de
7) Afghanistan: GTZ und Heidelberger Druck bauen neues Ausbildungszentrum auf; www.gtz.de

see also German ,,Warlords"in Afghanistan