Last month, United States President Donald Trump ordered his administration to reschedule cannabis from its current status as a Schedule I substance to Schedule III. Part of the executive order called for the federal cannabis rescheduling process to be expedited.

The United States is, to a degree, bound by various international agreements, including United Nations agreements. In reaction to the announcement of rescheduling in the United States, the International Cannabis Business Conference’s media partner, Cannabis and Tech Today, reached out to the United Nations’ International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) to get its reaction to the planned U.S. rescheduling.

“The INCB Board has taken note of the Executive Order of the U.S. President that would reschedule cannabis to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act,” said a representative from the INCB Secretariat, according to Cannabis and Tech Today’s original reporting. “In line with the international drug control conventions and its longstanding position, INCB highlights that States parties should limit the use of cannabis to medical and scientific purposes.”

“Governments that wish to establish access schemes to allow for medical or scientific uses of cannabis should establish the set of control measures found in the Convention, including the establishment of a national cannabis agency to control, supervise, and license the cultivation of cannabis crops; the designation of the areas in which cultivation is permitted; and the licensing of cultivators.” the outlet also reported.

It is worth noting that the United States’ rescheduling of cannabis would not legalize cannabis for adult use at the federal level in the U.S. The U.S. Controlled Substances Act, which was first implemented in 1971, resulted in cannabis being classified as a Schedule I substance.

Schedule I substances are described by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as “drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.” Conversely, Schedule III substances are described as “drugs with a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence.”

After the states of Colorado and Washington adopted state-level adult-use cannabis legalization measures over a decade ago, and Uruguay became the first country to adopt a national recreational cannabis legalization measure in 2013, the United Nations INCB issued warnings to the United States and Uruguay that such policies put the countries in violation of international drug treaties. However, the warnings did not stop the United States from tolerating state-level legalization.

The United Nations itself rescheduled cannabis roughly five years ago, when the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) voted to remove cannabis from Schedule IV of the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs.

“With a vote of 27 in favour, 25 against, and one abstention, the CND has opened the door to recognizing the medicinal and therapeutic potential of the drug, although its use for non-medical and non-scientific purposes will continue to remain illegal. According to news reports, the decision could drive additional scientific research into the plant’s medicinal properties.” UN News reported at the time.