Brussels, 24/02/2010 (Agence Europe) - The publication, on Wednesday 24 February, of the 2009 report by the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), has shown improvements in drugs behaviour in Europe. The efforts of the countries to raise awareness among young people and improve prevention strategies, even within populations which do not use drugs or use them infrequently, however, need to be stepped up, the report stresses. The report highlights a few new facts in behaviour related to drugs, its consumption and sales. Firstly, levels of abuse of certain drugs appear to be stable or even falling in certain European countries. The consumption of cannabis has stabilised in many areas and the same is true of the use of amphetamines and MDMA ("ecstasy"). As the laws are becoming stricter- for example, the United Kingdom tightened up its laws on cannabis in 2009- drug use has seen a downward trend. Notwithstanding, Europe remains a major market for cannabis and Western Europe constitutes the world's largest market for cannabis resin. At the same time, drug users are turning increasingly to cocaine. The opiate markets in the countries of Eastern Europe are continuing to expand. As regards heroin, the majority of seizures of the drug in Europe were made in the United Kingdom, Italy, France and Germany. For more information, see: http: //http://www.incb.org/incb/fr/index.html (V.L.B/trans.fl)