Tehran, IRNA - The head of Iran’s Anti-Narcotics Headquarters has blamed Western powers for a surge in synthetic narcotic drugs, questioning the logic behind the substantial influx of precursor chemicals into Afghanistan for drug production.

Brigadier General Eskandar Momeni made the remarks as he met with the commander of Pakistan's Anti-Narcotics Force, General Muhammad Aniq Ur Rehman in Tehran on Wednesday.

He criticized the self-proclaimed advocates of human rights for supplying Afghanistan with such high volumes of drug production precursors.

Momeni also hailed the strong relations between Iran and Pakistan and stressed the need to further strengthen operational cooperation, especially in border security, counter-narcotics and counter-terrorism.

The Pakistani official, for his part, said that both Iran and Pakistan are facing the threat of opium cultivation in Afghanistan.

Aniq Ur Rehman pointed out that superpowers are clearly benefiting from the illicit drug industry, and called on Iran and Pakistan to deepen their cooperation to tackle the shared threat.

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