As the U.S. military build-up continues in Central Asia, one frequently overlooked factor in the region's stability demands attention. It is the link between Afghan opiates and terrorism. After September 11, Western government officials and media reports put the onus for this link on al-Qaeda and the Taliban. But neither of these groups was ever interested in the large-scale production or trafficking of opiates.

Forces aligned against the Taliban find themselves in an uneasy relationship with the drug lords who cultivate much of the world's heroin.

UNDP Administrator Mark Malloch Brown talks with host Daljit Dhaliwal.

Use our Maps to size up the scope of Afghanistan's opium industry.

Fmr. World Bank Chief Economist Joseph Stiglitz talks with host Jamie Rubin.

Our Timeline reveals historical paths as distinctive as cowboys and gauchos.