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International conference ‘Parliamentarians Against Drugs’ opens in Moscow

MPs from 43 countries will attend the forum that is being held by the State Duma with participation of the United Nations

MOSCOW, December 4. /TASS/. The international conference dubbed "Parliamentarians Against Drugs" kicks off on Monday in the Russian capital. The forum is being held by the State Duma with participation of the United Nations; the National Anti-Drug Union is also an official co-organizer of the conference.

"The goal of the conference is to establish a parliamentary dimension of international anti-drug cooperation and develop the existing legal framework for international cooperation in the fight against the spread and use of drug substances and on preventive healthcare and treatment of drug addicts," the State Duma Department for Public and Media Relations explained.

MPs from 43 countries, heads of Russian ministries and agencies and heads of Russian regional legal and executive entities will attend the conference that will be chaired by State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin. Representatives of leading foreign and Russian non-profit organizations working to prevent drug trafficking and rehabilitate drug and alcohol abusers are also expected to attend the conference.

The conference participants will discuss the current issues of countering drug trafficking and share the experience on rehabilitation and support for healthy lifestyle, especially among young people, accumulated in different countries. "Apart from the issues of international cooperation in the legal regulation of this area, the conference will focus on the best practices of the war on drugs, methods of preventive healthcare and ways to treat drug addicts," the department said.

The following people will speak at the conference: UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed , Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Yury Fedotov, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Secretary-General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Rashid Alimov, Russian Health Minister Veronika Skvortsova, parliamentary chairmen from Indonesia, Iran, Pakistan, Uzbekistan and Ecuador, heads of the State Duma factions, parliamentary vice speakers from various countries and representatives of foreign and Russian non-profit organizations.

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