Pubdate: Wed, 30 Dec 1998 Source: ITAR-TASS (Russia) Copyright: 1998 ITAR-TASS. INTERIOR MINISTER HOLDS COMMISSION MEETING ON DRUG CONTROL. MOSCOW, December 30 (Itar-Tass) - Russian Interior Minister Sergei Stepashin pointed on Wednesday to the need to step up efforts by power bodies at all levels to prevent illegal trafficking of narcotics, psychotropic substances and substances, used to produce narcotics. The minister chaired a meeting of the government commission on drug control and drug trafficking at the Government House. The meeting examined information by the Public Health Ministry on drawing up bills on social and medical rehabilitation of drug-addicted people. In 1999, this document is to be submitted for the consideration of the State Duma (Russian parliament lower house). Besides, commission members discussed the state of affairs on drug control in the Mordovia Republic and the Altai Territory, examined the role of the mass media in stepping up drug-control publicity and considered questions on more active international cooperation under the U.N. programme for drug control. On Tuesday, President Boris Yeltsin instructed the government to complete the setting up of a federal extra-budgetary drug-trafficking fund. He also instructed the government to take additional measures in this sphere: "to draw and submit proposals to the Russian Federal Assembly (Eds: Russian parliament) on amendments and addenda to legislation, regulating struggle against drug propagation, to conclude international treaties on extradition of people, committing drug crimes, to draw up a programme of measures to prevent drug addiction among minors and young people." Stepashin also reported on Tuesday that the situation with drug addiction continues to deteriorate in Russia: "The total number of drug-related crimes reached 170,000. The number of crimes, committed by minors in this sphere, rose by two percent." - --- Checked-by: Patrick Henry