Iran is suffering an unforeseen consequence of Afghanistan's opium ban, Ohio lawmakers move to regulate -- not ban -- intoxicating hemp products, and more.

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Ohio House Approves Bill Regulating Marijuana, Restricting Intoxicating Hemp Products. The House last Thursday approved Senate Bill 56, which would change the state's marijuana laws and restrict the sale of intoxicating hemp products. The bill now goes back to the Senate for final approval, with a vote tentatively set for December 9.

The Senate had originally passed the bill in February, but the House made major changes, most notably by regulating intoxicating hemp products, when it first passed the bill in October. The Senate voted unanimously a week later not to approve those changes.

The bill then went to conference committee at the end of October, but the federal Congress then moved to ban intoxicating hemp products in mid-November, and now the House has approved a version of the bill that does not ban the sale of those products but limits their sale to authorized marijuana retailers and limits the amount of THC allowed in beverages to 5 milligrams.

"When it comes to intoxicating hemp products, we essentially cut to the chase," said Rep. Brian Stewart (R). "We had already whittled down most retailers where those could be sold. That is going to kick in. They're going to have the 90 days of runway that's in the bill. After that, all those products are either going to be sold in a marijuana dispensary or they won't be allowed to be sold."

As for marijuana, the bill would decrease the maximum THC level in marijuana extracts from 90 percent to 70 percent and caps THC levels in buds for adult use at 35 percent. The bill maintains the 10 percent retail tax on marijuana sales and keeps home grows at up to six plants per person and 12 plants per residence.

Foreign Policy

Mexico's President Rules Out US Cross-Border Strikes on Drug Cartels. A day after President Donald Trump (R) once again suggested he could approve military action against drug cartels within Mexican territory, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum dismissed the notion.

"Would I want strikes in Mexico to stop drugs? Okay with me, whatever we have to do to stop drugs," Trump told reporters last Monday.

But it's not OK with Sheinbaum, who has repeatedly brushed aside similar Trump administration comments about using US military force within Mexico. The administration has repeatedly attacked small boats it claims are carrying cartel drugs, but has been careful to do so only in international waters.

"It's not going to happen," Sheinbaum said last Tuesday. "[Trump] has suggested it on various occasions or he has said, 'we offer you a United States military intervention in Mexico, whatever you need to fight the criminal groups.' But I have told him on every occasion that we can collaborate, that they can help us with information they have, but that we operate in our territory, that we do not accept any intervention by a foreign government," Sheinbaum said.

Sheinbaum added that she has previously told Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio that Mexico was not open to foreign military intervention. She said that they understood her position. Indeed, the same day Trump made his comments, the US Embassy in Mexico shared a video on X that had Rubio saying the US would not take unilateral action in Mexico. Someone should tell his boss.

International

Afghan Opium Ban Impacting Iran's Medicinal Opium Supply. When the newly reinstalled Taliban government in 2022 banned opium production in what had been the world's leading poppy producer for decades, disruptions of illicit opium markets was expected. But an unanticipated result of the ban is a large reduction in the amount of Afghan opium seized by Iranian authorities -- and that seized opium was being used in the Islamic Republic's pharmaceutical sector.

Now, Iran is facing a shortfall of 400 to 500 tons of opium for its medical needs. During Afghanistan's opium heyday since the turn of the century, Iranian authorities seized more than a thousand tons of opium a year, but now that figure is down to barely 200 tons -- not enough to produce essential medicines such as morphine and codeine.

Now, local media indicate, authorities are considering growing their own poppies under a tightly regulated system. The scheme would feature a government monopoly on purchases and licensed opium farms with security measures. Production would be coordinated and overseen by the Agriculture Ministry, the Food and Drug Administration, and Drug Control Headquarters.