YEREVAN, JULY 31, ARMENPRESS. According to official statistics, Azerbaijan is home to nearly 22,000 chronic drug addicts, the Azerbaijani azadliq news agency reported.

At the same time, according to Arzu Naghiyev, the deputy CEO of the Azerbaijani Trend news agency, the real number of narcotic users in the country is above the official estimates – reaching nearly 300,000.

According to the media executive, Azerbaijan is also a transit point for drug trafficking and smuggling.

“Heroin is mainly shipped from Afghanistan to Iran, from Iran to Azerbaijan, and from Azerbaijan to Europe. These narcotics are acquired in Afghanistan for 3 billion dollars, and by shipping them to Europe the price becomes 32 billion dollars. This number is greater by 4-5 times than the state budget of average European countries”, Naghiyev said.

According to official estimates, every 5th of the officially registered drug abusers is a minor.