Soros wants end to war on drugs

23 January 2013 Last updated at 15:12 ET

George Soros, the billionaire investor, has called for an end to the West's "war on drugs".

Mr Soros has thrown his weight behind a push by Guatemalan President Perez Molina, who recently declared that prohibition should be abandoned.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum, Mr Soros said that the narcotics trade threatened stability in many countries.

He also said austerity "demanded" a new approach to drugs policy, as incarceration was very expensive.

While he admitted that he did not have a specific solution to the problem, Mr Soros said he was "very, very optimistic" of seeing a new approach to the "festering problem of drugs".

"What got me involved is that the war on drugs was doing more damage than the drugs themselves," he told a press conference alongside President Molina.

"I have a strong conviction that the current approach is doing more harm than good, and it has endangered more political stability in a lot of countries. That we need to change."

President Molina said he would organise a meeting of Latin American leaders next June to discuss the issue, which will involve several groups including Mr Soros' foundation.

The "war on drugs" refers to a hard-line approach undertaken by the US government since the 1970s, which involves strict law enforcement, and foreign aid and military intervention in countries, in order to stamp out the narcotics trade.

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Soros wants end to war on drugs