Georgia: Tbilisi struggles with drug policy reform

Georgia has held transparent elections and it has pledged to create an independent court system and to honor media rights. But when it comes to government policy on illegal narcotics, the South Caucasus country is still not ready for European integration, experts contend.

In Georgia, as in many other formerly Soviet republics, drug laws focus primarily on the prosecution and punishment of users, rather than on treatment or prevention. In much of the European Union, the approach toward illegal narcotics use is more integrated.

The differences could become more pronounced once Tbilisi signs an agreement on closer long-term ties with the European Union -- a deal often cast as a major step toward eventual membership. The association agreement is slated to be signed on June 27.

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