Russians' alcohol problem worse than a decade ago

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev this week called for a tougher fight against alcoholism in Russia, voicing concern that Russian drinking was worse than in the bleak 1990s after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

"We drink more than in the 1990s, though times were hard then. We must prepare a step-by-step programme and take measures against this," he said during a meeting with Health Minister Tatyana Golikova, according to the RIA Novosti news agency.

Alcohol abuse kills some 500,000 Russians annually and greatly impacts male life expectancy which is lower than in impoverished countries such as Bangladesh or Honduras, the Russian civil chamber's report published in mid-June said.