1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances
Background
The Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971 is a United Nations treaty that establishes international controls on psychoactive drugs, including amphetamine-type stimulants, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, and psychedelics. It applies to states that join the treaty and, in practice, requires them to regulate the import, export, and use of listed substances, generally limiting them to scientific and medical purposes. Because it is not self-implementing, its practical effect depends on domestic legislation adopted by each party to create restrictions and penalties.
Signed in Vienna, Austria, on 21 February 1971, the convention came into force on 16 August 1976. It was developed under the United Nations framework in response to the fact that the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961 did not cover many newly emerging psychotropic substances, since that earlier treaty was limited to drugs with cannabis, coca, and opium-like effects. During the 1960s, these newer drugs became widely available, prompting governments to seek an international system of control.
The convention helped create the modern international drug control framework by bringing newly identified psychotropic substances under treaty-based regulation. As of 2013, 183 states were parties to it, and many countries adopted or expanded domestic laws to implement its requirements, including legislation in Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The treaty’s controls were later supplemented by the 1988 United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, which addressed trafficking, precursor chemicals, money laundering, and related offenses.
Timeline
Russia reaffirmed an initiative to place mephedrone under international control under the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances.
On the Meeting Between Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia D.E. Lubinsky and President of the International Narcotics Control Board S. AtasaRussia reaffirmed an initiative to place methadone precursors under international control under the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances.
On the Meeting Between Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia D.E. Lubinsky and President of the International Narcotics Control Board S. Atasa
Documents
On the Meeting Between Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia D.E. Lubinsky and President of the International Narcotics Control Board S. Atasa
Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Lubinsky met INCB President Atasa in Vienna, reaffirming a Russian initiative to place mephedrone and methadone precursors under international control and pledging continued UN budget support for the INCB.