This article was produced by the Xinhua News Agency, the official press agency of the People's Republic of China. Xinhua describes itself as the "information organ of the central government." Given China’s size and importance, GlobalPost publishes Xinhua’s press feed as a resource for its readers and makes no claims as to journalistic accuracy.

BRUSSELS, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Medical marijuana is to go on sale in Belgium as from early July, De Morgen reported on Friday.

A royal decree legalising the sale of cannabis for pain alleviation was signed by Health Minister Maggie De Block on Thursday.

Beijing, the capital city of China, is moving rapidlytowards banning smoking. It’s part of an ambitious attempt to curb a habit that has taken its toll on the health of Chinese citizens.

For years, Chinese health experts have pressed government officials to do something about the country’s devastating addiction to smoking. Currently, it’s estimated that more than 300 million Chinese citizens–almost the entire population of the United States–are smokers. Of course, that also means millions more are regularly exposed to second-hand smoke.

An Australian English teacher has been deported from China after police found a commercial quantity of marijuana in his apartment.

The 34-year-old identified by the Xinhua news service as David Robert Ancel Green was caught with dozens of marijuana plants, a generator, heat lamps, and a fan.

Police also seized music and bird sounds the Australian told authorities he played to his crop.

Video of the raid shows police forcing their way into the man's rented flat in the eastern city of Changshu. The teacher's face in blurred in the video.

Green is said to have lived in the country for 14 years, the ABC reports.

MILWAUKEE — Scores of travelers streamed through Los Angeles International Airport in March, just off a flight from China. But one passenger, a 33-year-old Chinese chemist, never reached baggage claim.

The passenger, Haijun Tian, was arrested at the airport by Drug Enforcement Administration agents, the prize at the end of an elaborate sting operation aimed at stemming the importation and sale of spice, the street name for a family of synthetic drugs that look like marijuana and are sprayed with a dangerous hallucinogenic chemical, then smoked.

International action star Jackie Chan and Academy Award-winning actor Morgan Freeman have come out on opposite sides of the marijuana debate in the last few weeks, begging the question: who would win if the two were to fight?

Chan, known for films like “Rumble in the Bronx” and the “Drunken Master” series, who also serves as an official Narcotics Control Ambassador for the Chinese government, spoke out in defense of China’s tough anti-drug laws at a recent anti-drug press conference in Singapore, stating that he supports the death sentence for some offenders.

Being a seasoned traveler and photographer, a journey to the Kingdom of Bhutan placed high on my bucket list.

Several years ago I visited there in a trip which also included China, Tibet and Nepal. The breathtaking flight from Nepal to Bhutan gave us spectacular views of Mt. Everest and the snow-covered Himalayan mountain range.

I thought I must have died and gone to Heaven.

As it turned out, the King of this tiny mountain democratic monarchy in the Himalayas was getting married the same week as my visit. The towns were exquisitely decorated and people donned their best regalia. Excitement was at a near frenzy in this normally sleepy and pastoral country. Every television was tuned in to the festivities, all eyes glued to the screen.

At the Chemsun Global pharmaceutical laboratory in an industrial park in Shanghai, the smell of fumes is so intense it leaves a bitter, chemical aftertaste in your mouth. At midnight on a recent Friday, a Chinese chemist who called himself Terry was eager to close a deal.

In the laboratory outside, a bright yellow liquid whirred around a flask. The place was filthy: surfaces were strewn with discarded rubber gloves and in one corner a sack of white powder spilled onto the floor.

Despite a long anti-drug crusade, Beijing is positioned to be a major player in the cannabis market.

An economic stir is happening in China, but it’s in an industry you might not expect. With more than half of the 600 relevant patents filed with the World Intellectual Property Office now owned by Chinese companies, the country is well positioned to dominate the global cannabis market. Which is very surprising for a nation where drug trafficking is still punishable by death and mere possession of the substance can result in a lengthy spell behind bars.