Press Release

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Partnership for the Future
Reducing Drug Use

United States and the Netherlands
Joint Agreement to Reduce Drug Use
Washington, DC–July 14, 2005

The United States and the Netherlands have been working together since 2003 to implement a comprehensive approach on Law Enforcement, Counternarcotics and Counterterrorism. This bilateral effort focuses on attacking major MDMA/Ecstasy production and trafficking organizations, enhancing law enforcement and judicial cooperation, improved targeting of drug couriers at Schiphol airport and Rotterdam seaport, and exchanging information on drug prevention, treatment and research.

In the field of drug prevention, treatment, and research, the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the Dutch ZonMw have been working successfully together. In March this year, the U.S. (Director of National Drug Control Policy, John Walters) and the Netherlands (Minister of Health, Welfare and Sports, Hans Hoogervorst) agreed to continue this fruitful cooperation and to create a separate and more detailed agreement to exchange scientific and demand reduction information. Today, the U.S. and the Netherlands are announcing the following additional actions on drug demand reduction:

• U.S.-Dutch Experts Meeting: The U.S. intends to host a meeting this Fall between U.S. and Dutch researchers/experts to develop further cooperation in the field of prevention and treatment.

• E-information: The U.S. and the Netherlands intends to exchange information on protocols and procedures and work together on the further development of web-based information on prevention and treatment for professionals (EELDA: Evidence-Based Electronic Library on Drug Addiction).

• Dutch Expert Assignment to NIDA: The Netherlands intends to assign a Dutch researcher to NIDA and/or a NIDA grantee to conduct collaborative research in the United States.

• Advancement of Internet Interventions. The U.S. and the Netherlands should exchange information on short treatment interventions on the Internet. This collaboration may include the development of cannabis Internet interventions as well as further development of E-health applications (prevention and treatment/self-management), and collaborative e-health research projects (e.g. multi-site trial & implementation studies).

• Exchange of Information on Prevention Programs and Research Coordination: The U.S. and the Netherlands should collaborate, cooperate, and exchange information and expertise regarding strategic frameworks for community prevention, and evidence-based policy coordination of data collection and dissemination. This may specifically include the information exchange on the health risks of high-THC cannabis.