TEHRAN - Hossein Maleki, head of the Iranian Foreign Ministry Department of International Cooperation for Countering Terrorism and Extremism, said on Sunday that the U.S. should be blamed for obstructing fight against drug trafficking.

“The U.S. sanctions have affected negatively the procedure of international cooperation in fighting drug trafficking. So, the U.S. should be blamed for this,” Maleki said at an anti-terrorism conference in Tajikistan.

He noted that Iran’s campaign against drug trafficking has been costly for the country.

Eskandar Momeni, chief of Iran’s drug war commander, announced last week that 800 tons of trafficked narcotics are annually discovered and seized in Iran. According to Fars, he said a major portion of these cargoes are destined for Europe.

“Annually, over 800 tons of drugs are discovered in Iran, a major part of which is used (by traffickers) for transit towards Europe,” General Momeni told reporters in Alborz province.

NA/PA