Pubdate: Fri, 26 Mar 1999 Source: Guardian, The (UK) Copyright: Guardian Media Group 1999 Contact: http://www.guardian.co.uk/ Author: Ian Black, Diplomatic Editor BRITAIN HELPS IRAN FIGHT DRUG-RUNNERS Britain is lifting its 20-year export ban on military and security equipment to supply Iran with bullet-proof vests to help border guards fight Afghanistan drug-smugglers. Tony Lloyd, the Foreign Office minister, announced yesterday that the Government was sending Tehran UKP300,000 worth of equipment as a contribution to a $13 million (UKP8 million) UN drug control package. It is the first example of close practical co-operation since last September, when Iran ended the long impasse in relations with Britain by formally withdrawing support for the death fatwa against the author, Salman Rushdie. The two countries are now expected to exchange ambassadors - a milestone made possible by President Mohammed Khatami's reformist regime, although disagreements remain about nuclear issues and the Middle East peace process. Iran is on the main route for drugs smuggled from Afghanistan and Pakistan, the source of 95 per cent of the opiates reaching Britain. Border guards have suffered heavy casualties in clashes with convoys of smugglers armed with machine-guns and rocket-propelled grenades. Britain has urged Afghanistan's ruling Taliban militia to crack down on heroin production, but UN efforts are focusing on helping improve law enforcement and co-operation with Pakistan, Turkmenistan and Turkey. - --- MAP posted-by: Patrick Henry