An international anti-drug forum in Moscow will draw the public's attention to the dangers of heroin abuse, which kills over 80 people daily in Russia alone, RIA Novosti's editor-in-chief said on Monday.
"According to official statistics, last year Russia was the world's biggest heroin consumer. These are unpleasant figures, and they show that we must seriously think about what is going on, primarily among our youth, where drug consumption is especially widespread," Svetlana Mironyuk said.
The forum, Afghan Drug Production: a Challenge to the International Community, will be held on Wednesday and Thursday.
Mironyk said about 200 experts, politicians, and drug-control specialists from 40 countries would attend.
She said the gravity of the problem was underestimated by Russian society and the media.
"We realize that such a serious problem can only be resolved within the system of international relations. Countering this threat is only possible through a comprehensive approach and the creation of an international coalition," Mironyuk said.
She said RIA Novosti, together with a number of other organizations, was launching a special English-language internet project offering news and analytical material on the fight against drugs. Other partners in the project include the State Anti-Drug Committee, the Council for Foreign and Defense Policy, the Institute of Demographic Studies.
"There are plenty of interesting initiatives and there could be even more because this is a global problem," Mironyuk said.
Afghan drug production increased dramatically after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled the Taliban in 2001. Russia, which has suffered a steep rise in heroin consumption, has been one of the countries most affected by the increase.
According to the Federal Drug Control Service, Afghan opium kills around 100,000 people around the world and around 30,000 Russians each year.
MOSCOW, June 7 (RIA Novosti)
