U.S. and China Collaborate in High-Level Discussions to Curb Fentanyl Trafficking

American and Chinese officials convened on Tuesday to discuss joint efforts in combatting the influx of fentanyl into the United States, showcasing a display of cooperation amidst the strained relationship between the two global powers. This two-day meeting marked the inaugural session of a newly established counternarcotics working group. Central to the discussions was the issue of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid wreaking havoc in America, with a particular focus on the ingredients for the drug that are manufactured in China.

In a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden outside San Francisco in November, an agreement was reached to resume cooperation in several areas, including drug trafficking. These agreements represented a small step towards bridging the divide between the two nations, which have significant differences on a range of issues such as trade, technology, Taiwan, and human rights.

The United States is calling upon China to take further action to restrict the export of chemicals that are being converted into fentanyl, often in Mexico, before being smuggled into the United States. Wang Xiaohong, the Chinese Public Security Minister, expressed satisfaction with the in-depth and pragmatic discussions held between the two sides.

Jen Daskal, the head of the U.S. delegation and a deputy homeland security advisor in the White House, highlighted the importance of the issue by emphasizing that President Biden had dispatched a high-level delegation to underscore its significance to the American people.

China was previously a major supplier of fentanyl, but the U.S. acknowledged a crackdown by Beijing in 2019 that resulted in a significant reduction in the seizure of fentanyl shipments from China. However, the U.S. now seeks to halt the export of the precursor ingredients.

Synthetic opioids, including fentanyl, have become the leading cause of death in the deadliest drug crisis ever witnessed in the United States. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drug overdoses were responsible for over 100,000 deaths in 2022, with more than two-thirds involving fentanyl or similar synthetic drugs.

China had previously rejected U.S. appeals for assistance as tensions between the two powers escalated, often suggesting that the U.S. should focus on resolving its domestic issues rather than assigning blame to China.

Formal talks were suspended in 2022 when China halted cooperation in several areas, including narcotics, in response to a visit to Taiwan by then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

The thaw in relations began in the lead-up to the meeting between President Biden and President Xi in November 2023. In October, a U.S. Senate delegation raised the issue of fentanyl during a visit to Beijing and stated that Chinese officials expressed sympathy for the victims of America’s opioid crisis.

However, China refused to engage in discussions on cooperation until the U.S. lifted sanctions on the Public Security Ministry’s Institute of Forensic Science. These sanctions were imposed by the Commerce Department in 2020, accusing the institute of complicity in human rights abuses against Uyghurs and other predominantly Muslim ethnic groups in China’s Xinjiang region.

In order to obtain cooperation on the fentanyl issue, the U.S. quietly agreed to lift the sanctions. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi acknowledged the removal of these obstacles in a speech on China-U.S. relations earlier this month.

The State Department spokesperson, Matthew Miller, described this as an appropriate step considering China’s willingness to address the trafficking of fentanyl precursors.