Legion magazine editorial
Published: 29 September 2009
Earlier this month, a Royal Navy crew spotted something very strange going on off the coast of Brazil. There, sailing through the area they were patrolling – a route that’s notorious for drug trafficking – was a rusty old fishing boat.
Just what it was doing in that spot is a mystery, especially as it wasn’t casting fishing nets. So the Navy decided to investigate.
As it turns out, their suspicions were spot on – onboard they found more than five-and-a-half tonnes of cocaine, which according to estimates had a street value of £240m.
It was the biggest haul ever found in a Navy raid. In fact, there was so much of it that some had to be stashed on the deck of HMS
Iron Duke after it was seized.
This is the not the first time
Iron Duke has hit the headlines for its part in a bumper drugs raid. In July and August this year, the warship was involved in two operations, which seized cocaine with an estimated street value totalling £39m.
It’s not much of a surprise the vessel has had so much success, as it’s one the Navy's most advanced warships, featuring specialized tracking equipment, and also accommodates a Lynx helicopter.
But despite the obvious good work being done out there, is policing the illegal drugs trade really the right job for such an advanced ship? Surely, if safeguarding our national security is the top priority for our armed forces, so how much of a threat can cocaine really be?
Perhaps a lot more than you’d expect. Take Afghanistan for example: the country is the world’s largest supplier of opium, yet cultivation of the drug in Helmand Province – where our troops are currently based – has fallen by a third over the past year.
A world that is rid of the illegal drugs trade should be one with better national security, and if the Navy’s work in the South American waters is preventing another full-scale conflict like there is currently raging in Afghanistan, then perhaps Iron Duke is in the right place all along? But what do you think?
Link:
watch the Royal Navy video
