President-elect Donald Trump said on Monday (Nov 25) that he will impose tariffs on the United States’ three biggest trading partners – Canada, Mexico and China – after taking office on January 20.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he would Impose 25% tariff on imported goods From three countries. Additionally, he also mentioned an “additional 10% tariff” on imports from China in response to the Asian country’s failure to stem the flow of fentanyl into the US.
Trump said, “I have spoken many times with China about the massive quantities of drugs being shipped to the United States, particularly fentanyl – but to no avail.” “Representatives from China told me that they would impose the maximum punishment, i.e. the death penalty, for any drug dealer caught doing this, but unfortunately, they never followed through, and drugs enter our country, mostly through Mexico. “, are coming at levels never seen before.” First. As long as they stop, we will continue to charge an additional 10% tariff from China.
That’s why fentanyl is a big problem for the US – and China has a role in it.
What is the scale of the United States’ opioid epidemic?
According to the website of US-based Johns Hopkins Medicine, opioids are a class of drugs that are “derived from, or mimic, natural substances found in the opium poppy plant”. They produce a variety of effects, including pain relief and euphoria, and are highly addictive. Some common opioids include oxycodone, morphine, codeine, heroin, and fentanyl.
According to the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), “Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use as an analgesic. [for pain relief] And anesthetic. It is approximately 100 times more powerful than morphine as an analgesic and 50 times more powerful than heroin. But overdose may cause numbness, change in pupil size, clammy skin, cyanosis [blue skin]Coma, and death due to respiratory failure”.
Users feel the effects of the opioid immediately, and it wears off just as quickly – leaving users needing it regularly. Often, people who initially start using prescription opioid-based painkillers become addicted.
The United States is seeing what many call an “opioid epidemic.” According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “The number of people who died from drug overdoses in 2021 was six times the number in 1999… Opioids accounted for more than 75% of the nearly 107,000 drug overdose deaths in 2021.” Was involved”.
What is China’s role in the opioid epidemic?
The US saw an increase in synthetic opioid-related deaths after 2013, largely due to the rapid proliferation of illegally manufactured fentanyl and fentanyl analogs such as acetyl fentanyl and carfentanil. A recent US House committee report found that inexpensive fentanyl is increasingly being incorporated into other drugs, often without the buyers’ knowledge.
The US has mainly blamed two countries for fentanyl trafficking – Mexico and China. A 2020 DEA intelligence report (‘Fentanyl Flows to the United States’) stated that fentanyl and fentanyl-related substances were trafficked from China through international mail and express consignment operations.
Investigative journalist Ben Westhoff tells VICE News how he discovered that several Chinese companies in Wuhan and Shanghai were involved in manufacturing chemicals used to make synthetic opioids (precursors). The Chinese-made chemicals will be sent to Mexico to be processed into pills and then shipped to the US.
The House committee report mentioned earlier states that the Chinese Communist Party “directly subsidizes” fentanyl production through tax breaks to companies – often engaged in other, legal chemical manufacturing – that produce precursors. Are included.
US President on April 24 Joe Biden FEND OFF FENTANYL bill signed into law to combat “illegal fentanyl traffickers in Mexico and creators of precursor chemicals in China.”
Need for US-China cooperation
The United States recognizes that cooperation with China is needed to address the fentanyl crisis domestically. Both governments have made periodic progress on this matter.
In 2019, China announced that it would add fentanyl-related substances to the list of controlled narcotic drugs. According to the DEA, China’s move shifted some production to India, although exports of fentanyl precursors here have also been regulated since 2018.
However, given the subsequent decline in US-China relations COVID-19 Pandemic, trade war and tension end taiwan and South China Sea, cooperation on this front has been adversely affected.
Recently, attempts have been made to restart cooperation. In November 2023, following Xi’s meeting with Biden, a bilateral Counternarcotics Working Group was announced to coordinate law enforcement actions and address the abuse of precursor chemicals, among other things.
There are many obstacles to tackling the fentanyl crisis
According to Westhoff, a lot depends on China’s local governments. Many provinces view fentanyl production as a source of employment for people. To avoid law enforcement agencies, operations often slightly alter the formulas of some chemicals.
China has also placed blame on the US, pointing out how even before fentanyl, the opioid crisis was in full swing. US pharmaceutical companies like Purdue Pharma have been accused of handing out heavy-duty opioid prescriptions to patients, causing them to become opioid addicts seeking more powerful drugs.
And China is one part of a much more complex puzzle, involving many countries, criminal organizations and issues. For example, Mexico is a major player in trade, but achieving cooperation with the country has been difficult. Earlier this year, the AP reported the head of Mexico’s spy agency as saying: “Mexico has been a champion of methamphetamine production, and now fentanyl.”