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PRESS RELEASE
On 11 March, on the sidelines of the 69th session of the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs [a UN intergovernmental body that oversees the implementation of international drug control treaties] in Vienna, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia D.E. Lubinsky held a meeting with Jagjit Pavadia Atasa, President of the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) [an independent quasi-judicial body that monitors implementation of the UN international drug control conventions].
During the meeting, the parties held a substantive exchange of views on international efforts to counter both traditional and emerging drug threats, including the rapid spread of synthetic drugs and their precursors. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to constructive cooperation on Russia's initiative to place the precursors of mephedrone and artisanally produced methadone under international control pursuant to Article 12 of the United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 20 December 1988. Particular attention was devoted to the alarming trend of overt and flagrant violations by a number of states of their international obligations under the three relevant conventions [the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances, and the 1988 Convention Against Illicit Traffic], including the legalization of controlled substances for recreational purposes, as well as to cooperation on the "INCB-Training" project.
The Russian side reaffirmed its readiness to continue supporting uninterrupted funding of the INCB from the UN regular budget in connection with the Board's core activities aimed at strengthening the existing international legal regime for drug control.