A flood of precursor chemicals into Myanmar is fuelling record meth production, officials said Wednesday, as the country's multi-billion-dollar drug trade spills out across Asia-Pacific.

The "Golden Triangle" -- a lawless wedge of land intersecting China, Myanmar, Thailand and Laos -- has for generations served as a base for opium and heroin production.&nbsp;

But it is Myanmar's meth production and trafficking that has skyrocketed to "alarming levels" in recent years, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

The price of the methampethamine pills -- known regionally as "yaba", Thai for crazy medicine -- has collapsed due to massive oversupply, as has "ice", which is the much more potent and addictive crystallised version that is smoked.

Meth from Myanmar's border area in the Golden Triangle is moving further than ever from its source, reaching India to the west and Australia to the southeast.

Officials from China, South and Southeast Asia, met in Myanmar's capital Naypyidaw on Wednesday to discuss the meth issue, which experts fear is causing a health and crime crisis.&nbsp;

But Myanmar should not shoulder all of the blame, said Aung Thu, the country's vice Home Affairs minister at the meeting.

"While we are a significant source of illicit drugs, we are not a source of the chemicals," he said, according to a statement issued by the UNODC, who organised the three-day meeting beginning on Wednesday.

"We reminded the region that precursors are required for synthetic drug production to continue to go up."

The chemicals can also be used for more innocuous purposes -- ephedrine and pseudoephdrine, for example, are used in cold remedies making it hard for officials to control imports.

Experts say precursors are usually made in northeastern India and China, while regional neighbours like Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam have growing chemical and pharmaceutical industries that could add to it. &nbsp;

"The synthetic drug situation is changing quickly and yet the speed information is being developed and exchanged is not keeping pace," said UNDOC's Inshik Sim, recommending governments flag suspicious new substances through an early warning system.

The volume of meth being seized by authorities across the regions indicates "a steady and rising supply" of chemicals into Myanmar, said UNODC regional representative, Jeremy Douglas told AFP.&nbsp;

Yet "governments are reporting little if any seizure of chemicals and pharmaceuticals" used to make it, which shows relative freedom at the borders when transporting it.

"The business will not be disrupted," Douglas warned, until there is a unified capacity to border detection of drugs and precursors across a region containing some of Asia's poorest countries.

An emerging concern for the UNDOC is the increasing production of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that caused an epidemic in America.&nbsp;

It is now being "produced, diverted and trafficked" from the region to North America and Australia, said the UNODC. &nbsp;

A flood of precursor chemicals into Myanmar is fuelling record meth production, officials said Wednesday, as the country's multi-billion-dollar drug trade spills out across Asia-Pacific.

A flood of precursor chemicals into Myanmar is fuelling record meth production, officials said Wednesday, as the country's multi-billion-dollar drug trade spills out across Asia-Pacific. The "Golden Triangle" -- a lawless wedge of land intersecting China, Myanmar, Thailand and Laos -- has for generations served as a base for opium and heroin production. But it is Myanmar's meth production and trafficking that has skyrocketed to "alarming levels" in recent years, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). The price of the methampethamine pills -- known regionally as "yaba", Thai for crazy medicine -- has collapsed due to massive oversupply, as has "ice", which is the much more potent and addictive crystallised version that is smoked. Meth from Myanmar's border area in the Golden Triangle is moving further than ever from its source, reaching India to the west and Australia to the southeast. Officials from China, South and Southeast Asia, met in Myanmar's capital Naypyidaw on Wednesday to discuss the meth issue, which experts fear is causing a health and crime crisis. But Myanmar should not shoulder all of the blame, said Aung Thu, the country's vice Home Affairs minister at the meeting. "While we are a significant source of illicit drugs, we are not a source of the chemicals," he said, according to a statement issued by the UNODC, who organised the three-day meeting beginning on Wednesday. "We reminded the region that precursors are required for synthetic drug production to continue to go up." The chemicals can also be used for more innocuous purposes -- ephedrine and pseudoephdrine, for example, are used in cold remedies making it hard for officials to control imports. Experts say precursors are usually made in northeastern India and China, while regional neighbours like Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam have growing chemical and pharmaceutical industries that could add to it. "The synthetic drug situation is changing quickly and yet the speed information is being developed and exchanged is not keeping pace," said UNDOC's Inshik Sim, recommending governments flag suspicious new substances through an early warning system. The volume of meth being seized by authorities across the regions indicates "a steady and rising supply" of chemicals into Myanmar, said UNODC regional representative, Jeremy Douglas told AFP. Yet "governments are reporting little if any seizure of chemicals and pharmaceuticals" used to make it, which shows relative freedom at the borders when transporting it. "The business will not be disrupted," Douglas warned, until there is a unified capacity to border detection of drugs and precursors across a region containing some of Asia's poorest countries. An emerging concern for the UNDOC is the increasing production of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that caused an epidemic in America. It is now being "produced, diverted and trafficked" from the region to North America and Australia, said the UNODC.

Meth precursors fuelling Myanmar's unstoppable drug trade

Myanmar troops seized $7 million worth of narcotics, precursors and equipment in a raid on drug labs in the restive north, the army said Monday, as it continues a war against ethnic rebels accused of profiting from the drug trade.

Soldiers and local officials found 259 kilogrammes (571 pounds) of crystal methamphetamine and 120 kg of opium in a sweep of the illicit drugs factory spread across 34 buildings near Lwalkhan, a village in war-hit Shan state near the Chinese border.

The army statement, posted on the commander-in-chief&#39;s Facebook page, also listed in rare detail the seized drug-producing equipment and precursors, including hundreds of barrels of acid and diesel, 750 bags of caustic soda, 22 freezers, 12 generators and huge caches of caffeine and other chemicals.&nbsp;

&quot;The Tatmadaw (military) seized the drugs in the raid and cooperated with the drug enforcement police team. The legal process is still ongoing,&quot; a senior police officer from the anti-drug department said on the condition of anonymity.

The bust took place in Kutkai township, where a record seizure last month brought in 30 million meth pills, two tonnes of &quot;ice&quot; -crystal meth- and heroin, with an estimated combined value of $54 million.&nbsp;

The raids come as the military continues its seasonal offensive against ethnic minority armed groups in the lawless border areas.

Last week alone, clashes between the army and rebels in Kutkai and neighbouring Hseni township displaced some 870 civilians, according to the UN&#39;s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Myanmar&#39;s conflict-riddled northeast is a hub for Asia&#39;s meth producers, who pump out narcotics that are showered across Southeast Asia and beyond.

Drugs trafficking fuels much of the fighting between the army and the ethnic rebels -- both of whom are accused of profiting from the illicit trade.

Myanmar is the second-largest opium producer in the world after Afghanistan, although a surge in demand for meth has caused a slump in poppy cultivation in recent years.

Rights groups accuse the military and armed groups of extrajudicial killings, torture and the recruitment of child soldiers.

Myanmar troops seized narcotics, precursors and equipment in a raid on drug labs in the restive north as it continues a war against ethnic rebels accused of profiting from the drug trade

Myanmar troops seized $7 million worth of narcotics, precursors and equipment in a raid on drug labs in the restive north, the army said Monday, as it continues a war against ethnic rebels accused of profiting from the drug trade. Soldiers and local officials found 259 kilogrammes (571 pounds) of crystal methamphetamine and 120 kg of opium in a sweep of the illicit drugs factory spread across 34 buildings near Lwalkhan, a village in war-hit Shan state near the Chinese border. The army statement, posted on the commander-in-chief's Facebook page, also listed in rare detail the seized drug-producing equipment and precursors, including hundreds of barrels of acid and diesel, 750 bags of caustic soda, 22 freezers, 12 generators and huge caches of caffeine and other chemicals. "The Tatmadaw (military) seized the drugs in the raid and cooperated with the drug enforcement police team. The legal process is still ongoing," a senior police officer from the anti-drug department said on the condition of anonymity. The bust took place in Kutkai township, where a record seizure last month brought in 30 million meth pills, two tonnes of "ice" -crystal meth- and heroin, with an estimated combined value of $54 million. The raids come as the military continues its seasonal offensive against ethnic minority armed groups in the lawless border areas. Last week alone, clashes between the army and rebels in Kutkai and neighbouring Hseni township displaced some 870 civilians, according to the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Myanmar's conflict-riddled northeast is a hub for Asia's meth producers, who pump out narcotics that are showered across Southeast Asia and beyond. Drugs trafficking fuels much of the fighting between the army and the ethnic rebels -- both of whom are accused of profiting from the illicit trade. Myanmar is the second-largest opium producer in the world after Afghanistan, although a surge in demand for meth has caused a slump in poppy cultivation in recent years. Rights groups accuse the military and armed groups of extrajudicial killings, torture and the recruitment of child soldiers.

Myanmar seizes drugs and equipment worth $7 million in lab raid

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Meth precursors fuelling Myanmar's unstoppable drug trade

Myanmar seizes drugs and equipment worth $7 million in lab raid