KNU Destroys Nearly 10 Million Methamphetamine Pills Smuggled via Salween River into Thailand
KNU soldiers destroyed nearly 10 million methamphetamine pills smuggled through the Salween River into Thailand, with Thai security officials witnessing the operation along the Myanmar-Thailand border. The drugs were produced in Myanmar and
On May 7, 2025, Phongpipat Meebunchamasai, headman of Mae Samlaep Subdistrict Administration Organization in Mae Sariang District, Mae Hong Son Province, announced that KNU soldiers conducted a public destruction of 9.93 million methamphetamine pills near Ta Kae Poo village in Mawlamyine township, Karen State, along the Salween River. Thai security representatives witnessed the operation alongside KNU military and civilian officials.
Mae Samlaep SAO officials noted that the area serves as a border trade zone and transit route from neighboring countries, making it vulnerable to drug trafficking. Both Thai and Myanmar authorities must cooperate more effectively in drug suppression efforts, the officials stated. This marked another major drug seizure along the Salween River smuggling route. While the SAO does not directly conduct drug enforcement, it coordinates intelligence sharing and border security cooperation to prevent narcotics trafficking and protect against the intensified government anti-drug policy.
KNU sources confirmed the destroyed drugs were produced in Myanmar and transported through Karen and Karenni states. They expressed concern that Myanmar may use drug suppression as a pretext to justify military operations in Karen areas. The KNU called for full cooperation in drug prevention and suppression efforts to prevent Karen State from becoming a drug transit corridor and to eliminate the drug epidemic entirely.
