Crossword Genius

Drank with heads of state when permitted (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

swallowed

'drank' is the definition.

'heads of state when permitted' is the wordplay.
'heads of' indicates taking the first letters.
'permitted' becomes 'allowed' ('allow' can be a synonym of 'permit').
The initial letters of 'state when' is 'sw'.
'sw'+'allowed'='SWALLOWED'

'with' is the link.

(Other definitions for swallowed that I've seen before include "Meekly accepted" , "Gulped" , "Ingested" , "drunk maybe" , "believed" .)

Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app