ANGERED by the dangerous inflow of narcotics into Germany due to lopsided policies of the Netherlands government, the Germans have demanded a change in the Dutch drug policy in no uncertain terms. Eduard Linter, a parliamentary secretary of state in the German interior ministry, said on January 4 that Germany would get tougher on 'narcotourism', as designer drugs like Ecstasy, amphetamines and cocaine were making an increasing appearance in the country.

The Netherlands is considered to be Europe's leading manufacturer of synthetic drugs. The Dutch defend their policy by saying that the openness has produced a decline in the number of people Using drugs, Wim Kok, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, announced that he will shortly meet with both Chancellor Helmut Kohl of Germany and President Jacques Chirac of France, who has also warned the Dutch to cut-tail the drug trade, and Mount a joint campaign against drug trafficking.