In Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia the national drug policy is regulated by the UN drug conventions and specifics of the national drug-related background. Since more and more countries in the region are becoming part of the European Union (EU) or are cooperating with EU, their policy is often guided by the legal provisions, strategy and experience of the European Union and its member states. [1]

National strategies
In the majority of countries the national drug control programmes or strategies are set forth by the legislation. The national strategic priorities are often given to supply reduction, displacing demand and harm reduction into the background. However, there is a tendency that is reflected, for example, in drug policies of Ukraine and Lithuania, where the national strategy integrates efforts that focus on drug supply, drug demand and harm reduction, research, information and coordination. Harm reduction can be represented in national policies either as a separate or an integrated pillar. [1]

Coordinating bodies
Many countries have a special body coordinating all the national measures aimed at counteracting drug trafficking and drug use. In Lithuania, for example, the Government established a special Drug Control Department. Created in 2004, it monitors the situation, develops standards for prevention, treatment and rehabilitation, fosters international cooperation, puts forth amendments to laws and liaises with various ministries and departments, local authorities and non-governmental sector. [5]

Some countries – such as Ukraine and Russia – established Public Councils that take part in the activities of drug control bodies, encouraging civil society to influence drug policy development and evaluation. However, participation in such councils is often reduced to formal memberships of NGOs and human rights activists. Hungary serves as a positive example of such cooperation – in March 2008 a Drug Committee was established in the country, uniting members of the Hungarian Parliament and other experts. This Committee has become a practical forum for the discussion of controversial issues in drug policy.

Funding
For most countries of the region it is impossible to calculate all drug control related expenditures, as there is no data on resources spent on maintaining various structures and departments – for example, expenses for operational work, investigation, court proceedings and detention, all of which are related to efforts aimed at counteracting drugs.

Nevertheless, funding is one of the most apparent indicators of priorities in drug policy. In Georgia, for example, government spending is only €9 annually per problem drug user, whereas a few years ago more than 80% of the funding was allocated to law enforcement. [1] A different picture is found in Lithuania, where government spending is estimated as €500 for each problem user, though this figure remains substantially less than the EU average of €2000, which shows a balance between funding for supply reduction and for efforts to control drug demand. [1]

Criminal liability for drug use and possession
Following UN drug treaties, the states legally prohibit possession, purchase, production and marketing of narcotic drugs for their citizens.

In Russia drug use is an administrative misdemeanor, with a fine amounting to 2–4% of a monthly salary; in Georgia administrative fine for such an offense is about 89% of an average salary. [1]

Drug possession in many countries is criminally prosecuted, with imprisonment length determined on the basis of the amount and type of drugs. In Ukraine, for instance, drug possession is punishable with 3–12 years in prison. In Kyrgyzstan criminal liability applies with the exemption of 1 gram of heroin, 5 grams of hashish or 20 grams of marijuana, preceded by two detentions during the same year with fewer amounts. On average in the region, prison terms for illegal drug sale ranges from 5 to 20 years.

Alternative treatment – a possibility to follow a therapeutic course instead of imprisonment – becomes available in some of the countries. Such practice is already supported in Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania and other states. [6]

Legal turnover of drugs
In the sphere of legal drug turnover the most pressing issue is related to regulating narcotic drugs used in opioid substitution therapy and to alleviate pain. In Russia, for example, methadone is prohibited both for substitution therapy and as a painkiller; buprenorphine can be used for cancer patients, but cannot be legally prescribed for drug treatment. [4] In most countries of the region substitution therapy is supported; however, legal barriers restrict treatment for the majority of those in need and do not allow patients to receive treatment in the form most convenient for them. [1]

The general repressive edge of drug policy impacts access to narcotic drugs for medical purposes – for example, in palliative care. According to WHO, the use of painkillers (such as morphine) remains low in most countries of the region. [3]

[1] Eurasian Harm Reduction Network (EHRN), 2009. ‘The impact of drug policy on health and human rights in Eastern Europe: 10 years after UN General Assembly Special Session on Drugs’, ed. by Raminta Stuikyte, David Otiashvili, Simona Merkinaite, Anya Sarang, Andrey Tolopilo. Vilnius: EHRN.

[in English]

[2] Otiashvili D., Sarosi P., Somogyi G., 2008 Drug Control in Georgia: Drug Testing and The Reduction of Drug Use?, The Beckley Foundation Drug Policy Programme, Briefing Paper Fifteen, May 2008.
[in English]

[3] Pain & Policy Studies Group. Availability of Opioid Analgesics in Eastern Europe. University
of Wisconsin Pain & Policy Studies Group/WHO Collaborating Center for Policy and
Communications in Cancer Care; Madison, Wisconsin, USA. Prepared for: Workshop on
Assuring Availability of Opioid Analgesics for Palliative Care; Budapest, Hungary: 25-27
February 2002 (Monograph).

[in English]

[4] Russian Harm Reduction Network (2005), Drug analgesics in the context of HIV epidemic.

[in Russian]

[5] Additional information is available at the official website of the Drug Control Department under the Government of the Republic of Lithuania: www.nkd.lt

[6] EMCDDA. (2008). Annual Report on the State of the Drugs Problem in Europe. European Center for Monitoring Drugs and Drug Addiction, Lisbon.

[in English]