As you know, there are strong relations between drug production and trafficking with violence and extremism, but I think that we need to have better understanding about main elements which can affect this process.
In this context, we may relate drug trafficking to extremism ideologically like FARC or Taliban and economically it can be related to organized crimes
The main elements are: cooperation between government agencies and heads of drugs. Without this historical relationship of mutual benefits, there can be no drug trafficking as we know it.
"Corruption is the entry of water, the boat is the society and the sea is all the resulting violence". The degree of extremism is the responsibility of narco and government that allows it.
The best example:
http://www.foia.cia.gov/sites/default/files/DOC_0001372115.pdf
Jason Burke wrote a book a few years ago titled "Al Qaeda". It is a fairly widely published book, and has some great insights regarding the links between terrorism and drug production - he also interviewed members of the Taliban prior to the 2001 war, sometimes asking about this specific question (all included in the book)
I always thought that a difference exists between organised crime (who are responsible for drug trafficking etc.) and political extremists.
Organised crime networks do not have an ideology, and are motivated by profit alone. Whereas extremists tend to have some political/religious goal in mind.
There's some really good work on organised crime and its characteristics by a criminologist, Mark Galeotti.
In many cases, it is a co-dependent relationship. The extremists can often provide protection for the drug production and security for the trafficking. The drug organization can provide financing support that is critical for the sustainment of extremists operation.
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