SIMFEROPOL/MOSCOW. April 2 (Interfax) - The program of methadone maintenance for heroin addicts in Crimea will be phased out, Russian Federal Drug Control Service chief Viktor Ivanov said on Wednesday.
"Crimea has become a region of Russia. All laws of the Russian Federation now apply to it. Methadone is considered a drug in Russia," Ivanov said.
Methadone maintenance of heroin addicts is legal in Ukraine, while it is prohibited in Russia. Some international non-governmental organizations called on Russia last year to legalize the methadone therapy for drug addicts.
Ivanov hosted a conference in Simferopol dealing with the countering of drug trafficking in Crimea on Wednesday.