Russia Bans Smoking

No more late-night balcony cigarettes, summer barbeques or candle-lit patio dinners: Russians are fuming at the latest fire safety legislation adopted to decrease the number of careless blazes.

If Russian lawmakers have their way, smoking for women under 40 will soon be banned, advertisement for condoms and pregnancy tests will be banished from the pages of mainstream media and using foreign words will result in a steep fine.

Russia risks igniting the ire of its 44 million smokers when it extends bans on cigarettes to restaurants and bars on Sunday as part of a battle to break the habit in one of heaviest-smoking countries in the world.

Russia's ambitious smoking ban, which aims to cut the number of smokers in half and improve public health, went into effect on Saturday amid doubts that its measures can be fully enforced.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law that will ban smoking in most public places and restrict cigarette sales in the world's second-largest tobacco market after China.

Russia launched a crackdown on smoking on Tuesday with a bill to ban tobacco advertising and raise taxes on cigarettes to help tackle a public health crisis in the world's second largest tobacco market after China.

No more late-night balcony cigarettes, summer barbeques or candle-lit patio dinners: Russians are fuming at the latest fire safety legislation adopted to decrease the number of careless blazes.

If Russian lawmakers have their way, smoking for women under 40 will soon be banned, advertisement for condoms and pregnancy tests will be banished from the pages of mainstream media and using foreign words will result in a steep fine.

Russia risks igniting the ire of its 44 million smokers when it extends bans on cigarettes to restaurants and bars on Sunday as part of a battle to break the habit in one of heaviest-smoking countries in the world.

Russia's ambitious smoking ban, which aims to cut the number of smokers in half and improve public health, went into effect on Saturday amid doubts that its measures can be fully enforced.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law that will ban smoking in most public places and restrict cigarette sales in the world's second-largest tobacco market after China.

Russia launched a crackdown on smoking on Tuesday with a bill to ban tobacco advertising and raise taxes on cigarettes to help tackle a public health crisis in the world's second largest tobacco market after China.