The International Opium Convention was the first drug control treaty (or agreement). It was signed at The Hague in The Netherlands on January 23, 1912. The United States organised a conference between 13 countries called the International Opium Commission in 1909 in Shanghai, China because people complained more and more about opium trade. The treaty was signed by Germany, the United States, China, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Japan, The Netherlands, Persia, Portugal, Russia, and Siam. The Convention said that "The contracting Powers shall use their best endeavours to control, or to cause to be controlled, all persons manufacturing, importing, selling, distributing, and exporting morphine, cocaine, and their respective salts, as well as the buildings in which these persons carry such an industry or trade."