SINGAPORE (Bloomberg) – China has strongly defended its crackdown on the fentanyl trade and condemned President Donald Trump’s tariffs, as tensions between the U.S. and China continue to escalate. Beijing urged the U.S. to recognize its efforts in controlling the fentanyl issue, calling for a return to dialogue to resolve broader trade and diplomatic disputes.
In a briefing on Wednesday, officials from China’s Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Public Security said that the country has made significant strides in tackling the illicit fentanyl trade and has done everything possible to help the U.S. address its drug crisis. One official emphasized that China has essentially done the U.S. a favor in this regard, adding that Washington should have expressed gratitude rather than imposing further tariffs on Chinese imports. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, urged the U.S. to re-engage in talks, signaling Beijing’s willingness to continue cooperation.
The two countries’ trade and diplomatic relations have reached an impasse, with both sides at odds over the conditions for resuming talks. China expressed frustration, saying the U.S. has failed to outline clear steps China must take to have tariffs lifted, despite claims from U.S. diplomats that messages had been sent through official channels in Washington.
In response to China’s actions, President Trump, in a recent executive order, increased tariffs on Chinese goods, accusing Beijing of doing too little to combat the drug crisis. He characterized the flow of fentanyl into the U.S. as “an unusual and extraordinary threat.” Beijing, however, has accused the U.S. of using the fentanyl issue as a pretext to justify the imposition of higher tariffs, reiterating its commitment to fighting the trade in a white paper distributed to reporters on Wednesday.
According to Drew Thompson, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, while Trump’s concerns about fentanyl are genuine, China’s responses have largely been reactive, focusing on dialogue and white papers instead of substantive action to address the root causes of the problem. “For China to take this issue seriously, they need to do more than just talk,” Thompson said. “It’s about real crackdowns and regulatory changes that target the producers, not just the intermediaries.”
China’s efforts to combat fentanyl have included high-profile actions, such as the 2019 sentencing of nine people for smuggling fentanyl to the U.S. after joint investigations with American law enforcement. However, cooperation has been sporadic, and efforts did not fully resume until last year. Since then, China has taken further steps, including the arrest of a money launderer linked to a Mexican drug cartel and additional controls over precursor chemicals that are used in the production of fentanyl.
Chinese officials also criticized some of the information provided by the U.S. on illegal activities, claiming that American intelligence had led to inaccurate results, including targeting a bankrupt catering firm and a bicycle parts maker. Since 2023, the U.S. has sanctioned and indicted several Chinese companies and individuals over fentanyl-related activities. However, Chinese officials argue that many of these companies had no involvement in the trade of scheduled chemicals.
In addition, China’s National Medical Products Administration announced that it will tighten oversight of fentanyl-related drug production and enhance export approval processes to prevent the diversion of drugs into illegal channels.
Fentanyl has been a major contributor to the rise in overdose deaths in the U.S., with a 2021 congressional report identifying China as the primary source of the drug and its precursors trafficked into the country. Despite ongoing tensions, both nations remain under pressure to address the issue, which has now become a focal point in their broader trade conflict.
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