RUSSIA STEPS OUT OF BOUNDS SAYS CANANDA LEGALIZING CANNABIS IS A BREACH OF INTERNATIONAL LAW
Russia has strongly emerged against the decision of Canada to make recreational marijuana legal, which calls the shift towards legalization as a “breach” of its “international legal obligations.”
The Russians officials talked about the international agreements such as the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961, the Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971 and, currently, the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988.
The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spoke about the number of international conventions, in which Canada plays a significant role and that these conventions need privy nations to limit the usage of marijuana and different drugs to only medical and scientific reasons.
The ministry said in an official statement that they expect the partners of Canada in the G-7 to reply to its ‘high-handedness’ since their convention has consistently stated its adherence to dominate the international law in relations concerning states.
Canada is now the world’s number 2 nation and the only partner of the rich G-7 to successfully pass a bill which legalizes recreational marijuana. The neighbors of the U.S. are planning to install these new regulations on October 17. The first country to legalize recreational marijuana was Uruguay, which was due to a 2013 legislation.
The country which has the most prominent signatory of these conventions is the U.S. Even though recreational marijuana has been legalized in nine states including the District of Colombia, there are claims that the U.S. respects these conventions since cannabis is still considered as an illegal drug at the federal level.
Even though the Obama administration ordered federal law enforcement to stop interfering in legal marijuana businesses in legalized states, Jeff Sessions who is the general attorney of President Donald Trump has told the federal government agents to interfere into marijuana businesses. These interference to legal marijuana at the federal level has created a lot of arguments also which deals with national banks and legal cannabis businesses in the U.S.
Most Banks in the U.S don’t do business with banks found in Uruguay since these banks control money from legal cannabis sales. Banks in the U.S. have declared federal regulations against drug trafficking and money laundering. Lawmakers in Canada were warned by Jeff Sessions before the vote in Ottawa. Sessions said that legalizing weed can create a lot of issues for Canadian citizens entering the U.S.
While it is still not clear if banks will refuse to do business with Canada, senior international policy manager at Drug Policy Alliance named Hannah Hetzer trusts that Canada’s propensity could save the country from a similar fallout.
According to Hetzer, Canadians are still waiting to see if U.S banks will do business with them. She added that banks in the U.S have not yet said anything concerning the case. She also said that it could create problems if U.S banks stop doing business with Canadian banks.
She also said that it is counterintuitive for federal anti-trafficking and money laundering laws to stop doing business with the marijuana industry. She also said that the department of legalization and regulation are working hard to fight the black market.
The justice department of the U.S. refused to speak when they were questioned by Newsweek on how it would reply to Canada’s decision. The treasury department of the U.S. did not reply instantly when the question was asked.
According to Hetzer, Russia’s condemnation will lead to more than critical statements. She also said that Canada is conscious that there will be opposed internationally by a few nations and the move could similarly violate international drug control treaties. She added “But like Uruguay, Canada has said they are [legalizing marijuana] for the health and safety of their citizens,” she also talked about the preamble to the international drug control treaty which states that the human health and welfare has to be considered.
According to a January poll by Pew Research, about 60 percent of Americans support the legalization of recreational marijuana, and rising bipartisan support for decriminalization and legalization, a few suggestions that the U.S. has the potential to legalize marijuana at the federal level.
According to Democratic Representative Earl Blumenauer of Oregon, who is the leader of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus “To have big legal marijuana market in a developed, democratic neighboring country like Canada will be a valuable signal to some of the holdouts that are encountered” He also told Mother Jones before the decision the decision of Ottawa that “It’s a vital progression towards normalizing marijuana.”
The Canadian legislation which legalizes the sale and consumption of recreational cannabis began on the 21st of June, however, it will be made official on October 17th. Canada is going to be the only nation in the G-7 to legalize recreational cannabis, and the second-ranked country after Uruguay to do so.
A statement from the Russian Ministry condemns Canada’s move as “the global drug evil” and it said the legalization of marijuana by Canada is an intense barrier which blocks the strategic goal set by the Global community which is to create a drug-free world. However, many nations are beginning to support the growth of cannabis.
A recent survey carried out in Canada by Dalhousie University in Halifax discovered that the marijuana support rose to 68 percent among Canadians. While different G-7 nations such as the United States and Germany have loosened their laws against cannabis. A Gallup poll carried out in the United States, in which about 9 states have decriminalized the recreational sale and consumption of cannabis, discovered that 64 percent of Americans support the legalization of cannabis.
The prime minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau has said that legalizing recreational cannabis protects it youths and stops organized crime. However everybody is not convinced, and many countries like Russia have been condemning the move on the international stage. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) declared a report stating its “regrets” the decision of Canada to legalize recreational cannabis. In March, the United Nations’ International Narcotics Control Board declared a statement signaling its partners to keep recreational cannabis illegal.
