US pressures China to stop flow of fentanyl
President Biden on Wednesday pressed Chinese leader Xi Jinping to crack down on Chinese companies that help produce fentanyl, a powerful drug that has killed hundreds of thousands of Americans. /p >
A plan to curb China's illicit exports of fentanyl and, in particular, chemicals that can be combined to make the drug, was one of the achievements the most important for the United States. of Mr. Biden and Mr. Xi's meeting, which took place as Pacific leaders gathered for an international conference in San Francisco.
After the meeting, Mr. Biden outlined an agreement to work with China to combat the narcotics trade.
China is home to a thriving chemical industry that produces compounds which are processed into pharmaceuticals, perfumes, textile dyes and fertilizers. Some of these same compounds can also be combined to create fentanyl, an opioid that can be 100 times more potent than morphine.
U.S. Officials say this The vast chemical industry plays a key role in the U.S. fentanyl crisis by supplying much of the materials used in illegal drug laboratories, including in Mexico, which is now the largest exporter of fentanyl to the United States. p>
The Chinese government denies that its country plays such a crucial role and instead accuses the United States of harboring a culture of drug use.
"Over-marketing by pharmaceutical companies, overprescribing by doctors, ineffective government enforcement, and the negative implications of marijuana legalization are among the combined factors causing a ever-growing narcotics market,” China’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement. last year.
United States Officials say they have stopped more fentanyl from entering the United States in the past two years than over the previous five years combined. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fentanyl and other synthetic opioids may have caused more than 77,000 overdose deaths in the United States between May 2022 and April 2023. The problem of fentanyl overdoses is particularly acute in San Francisco , where Mr. Biden and Mr. Xi meet.
Ian Johnson, senior fellow for China studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, said that bringing the China agreeing to do something about fentanyl would resonate more with average Americans than the typical “deliverables” from international meetings.
“For Biden, it would be nice to having to show it in the heart of the United States. that relations with China are more than an esoteric issue, but can actually bring something to ordinary people,” Mr Johnson told a Council press briefing last week. Republicans have made fentanyl-related deaths a central plank of their campaign against Mr. Biden and Democrats in the 2024 election.
President Biden on Wednesday pressed Chinese leader Xi Jinping to crack down on Chinese companies that help produce fentanyl, a powerful drug that has killed hundreds of thousands of Americans. /p >
A plan to curb China's illicit exports of fentanyl and, in particular, chemicals that can be combined to make the drug, was one of the achievements the most important for the United States. of Mr. Biden and Mr. Xi's meeting, which took place as Pacific leaders gathered for an international conference in San Francisco.
After the meeting, Mr. Biden outlined an agreement to work with China to combat the narcotics trade.
China is home to a thriving chemical industry that produces compounds which are processed into pharmaceuticals, perfumes, textile dyes and fertilizers. Some of these same compounds can also be combined to create fentanyl, an opioid that can be 100 times more potent than morphine.
U.S. Officials say this The vast chemical industry plays a key role in the U.S. fentanyl crisis by supplying much of the materials used in illegal drug laboratories, including in Mexico, which is now the largest exporter of fentanyl to the United States. p>
The Chinese government denies that its country plays such a crucial role and instead accuses the United States of harboring a culture of drug use.
"Over-marketing by pharmaceutical companies, overprescribing by doctors, ineffective government enforcement, and the negative implications of marijuana legalization are among the combined factors causing a ever-growing narcotics market,” China’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement. last year.
United States Officials say they have stopped more fentanyl from entering the United States in the past two years than over the previous five years combined. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fentanyl and other synthetic opioids may have caused more than 77,000 overdose deaths in the United States between May 2022 and April 2023. The problem of fentanyl overdoses is particularly acute in San Francisco , where Mr. Biden and Mr. Xi meet.
Ian Johnson, senior fellow for China studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, said that bringing the China agreeing to do something about fentanyl would resonate more with average Americans than the typical “deliverables” from international meetings.
“For Biden, it would be nice to having to show it in the heart of the United States. that relations with China are more than an esoteric issue, but can actually bring something to ordinary people,” Mr Johnson told a Council press briefing last week. Republicans have made fentanyl-related deaths a central plank of their campaign against Mr. Biden and Democrats in the 2024 election.
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