The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control adopted at the latest annual assembly of the World Health Organization is the first multilateral pact in the field of public health. The harmful effects of tobacco on health are well-known, but its use remains widespread. The fact is that while the health dangers of tobacco are overwhelming, governments have long depended on it for tax revenue. Few products are as loaded with contradiction as tobacco.

Every year about 5 million people around the world die from tobacco-related illnesses, including cancer, cerebral diseases and cardiovascular problems. In Japan alone, tobacco claims the lives of an estimated 100,000 people annually. Moreover, tobacco-related diseases are becoming more serious, and the number of victims is increasing on an annual basis. The WHO estimates that unless countermeasures are strengthened, the annual number of tobacco-related deaths will number 10 million in 2030.

Controls began to take shape from the 1970s, primarily in Europe and the United States. There have been visible results, including a decline in cancer-related deaths. Unfortunately, to make up losses from declining domestic markets, tobacco companies increased their exports to developing countries so that the overall toll on human health did not decrease. Therefore, pressure grew to establish a multilateral convention to strengthen regulations on the international level.