Ukrainian President Legalizes Medical Marijuana

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy/Instagram @zelenskyy_official

JAKARTA - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a bill that legalizes the use of marijuana for medical purposes in Ukraine, according to Ukrainian parliament Verkhovna Rada.

On December 21, 2023, board member Yaroslav Zheleznyak said Verkhovna Rada had adopted a bill on legalizing medical marijuana at the second hearing. Then, a resolution to block the bill was already registered in parliament and most deputies refused to block it.

"The RUU which regulates the circulation of hemp plants for medical, industrial, scientific and scientific purposes... is returned with the signature of Volodymyr Zelenskyy," said Verkhovna Rada in a statement reported by ANTARA, Friday, February 16.

The bill comes into effect six months after its official stipulation.

During the 2019 presidential election campaign, Zelenskyy promised to legalize medical marijuana. But in July 2021 the bill failed to obtain parliamentary approval.

Ukraine's cabinet supports the president's efforts to allow the cultivation and use of marijuana for medical and scientific purposes in June 2022.