Indopedia All Things Marijuana
While this new law marks a historic turning point in the progressive acceptance of marijuana after decades of prohibition, it has also placed the country in violation of several international drug treaties. This week, the Russian Foreign Ministry released a statement criticizing Canada’s decision to legalize weed, calling it a “Gross and deliberate violation by the country of its international legal obligations,” UAWire reports. Each of these treaties requires member nations to take steps to prohibit marijuana, along with other drugs, and do not condone member nations taking a “Flexible interpretation” or creating “Exceptions” to these rules.
The Russian Foreign Ministry released a statement saying that “The drug liberalization carried out by the Canadian authorities will become a serious obstacle to promoting the establishment of a strategic goal by the world community – to build a drug-free society,” UAWire reports. It is unclear at this stage whether Canada will face any censure from other nations for their support of legal weed, beyond Russia’s criticism. It may also be possible for the country to just ignore international law, as Uruguay has done, and simply wait for the global tide of support for legal pot to shift in their favor.
