A majority of Ukraine’s Parliament voted in favor after the first reading of a draft law to establish the legal footing for medical cannabis production and distribution in the Eastern European nation.
According to The Kyiv Independent, the draft received support from 268 of Parliament’s 405 lawmakers.
The bill might undergo further revisions as Parliament’s scrutiny of the draft law continues.
A second vote needs to be held before it can reach the desk of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for final approval.
In June, Zelenskyy urged Parliament to work faster on the pending law, which has been stalled for two years.
“All the world’s best practices, all the most effective policies, all the solutions, no matter how difficult or unusual they may seem to us, must be applied in Ukraine so that Ukrainians, all our citizens, do not have to endure the pain, stress, and trauma of war,” Zelenskyy said at the time.
“In particular, we must finally fairly legalize cannabis-based medicines for all those who need them, with appropriate scientific research and controlled Ukrainian production.”
The draft law is available here and here.
