Some countries develop illegal drugs industries, and others do not. Discerning the distinguishing characteristics - social, economic and political - of countries with these industries forms the subject of this study. The author, Francisco E. Thoumi, though trained as an economist, rejects simplistic economic solutions as well as simplistic moral ones as he addresses the Andean countries of Peru, Colombia and Bolivia and the attitudes and responses of the United States. He investigates how the United States and the Andean countries perceive drugs issues; the history, structure and evolution of drug industries in the Andes; the size of the industries in Peru, Colombia and Bolivia; and their economic, political and social effects in each country. Thoumi also addresses the political systems and social characteristics of these countries and why they have been so vulnerable to influence from these industries, and offers case studies of a variety of anti-drug efforts including crop substitution and alternative development, eradication, interdiction of illicit traffic and manufacturing facilities, and extradition to the United States of traffickers.