Tariff war will only impede Sino-U.S. counternarcotics cooperation

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On Tuesday, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump threatened to charge an additional 10 percent tariff, above any additional tariffs, on all Chinese goods coming into the United States, blaming China for making little effort to stop the flow of fentanyl into the country.

This accusation is not only ungrounded but also misleading. Such irresponsible statements will give no benefit at all to the United States but only hinder Sino-U.S. anti-drug cooperation.

Let's first have a fact-check on Trump's accusation. Has China really done so little to stem the flow of fentanyl into the United States?

China has undertaken tremendous efforts to combat the fentanyl crisis in terms of legislation and law enforcement both at home and abroad in the past few years.

Due to the strict supervision of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, large-scale abuse of fentanyl and its analogues has rarely been found in China. It is out of goodwill that China has been dedicated to helping relevant countries cope with the global challenge posed by fentanyl and related substances.

In recent years, China has been optimizing the legislation on the control of fentanyl and related substances. On May 1, 2019, China took the lead in the world to schedule the whole category of fentanyl-related substances. In other words, the illegal trafficking of all the substances with similar structures to fentanyl, other than for the purpose of medical treatment, industrial and scientific research, will be severely punished by the Chinese government.

Apart from that, three additional legal documents regarding the filing, prosecution and conviction of crimes involving fentanyl-related substances have been drafted.

On September 1, 2024, China further implemented strict supervision on key fentanyl precursors, including 4-AP, 1-boc-4-AP and norfentanyl, requiring that all related production and sales activities should hold legal licenses and increasing the scrutiny of the export of these chemicals.

Apart from stricter regulations, China has undertaken comprehensive and tough law enforcement measures for controlling the flow of fentanyl. So far, five sub-centers of the National Drug Laboratory have been established across the country to enhance the detection and monitoring capabilities of fentanyl-related substances.

In addition, large-scale investigations on the biopharmaceutical bases, especially the key enterprises and personnel involved in the production and distribution of fentanyl related substances have been launched to eliminate the risk of illegal production of fentanyl-related substances.

Furthermore, the control of fentanyl sales networks has been strengthened. China's Ministry of Public Security has been taking concrete action to clean up and rectify information on fentanyl-related substances on the Internet, delete online information and advertisements on the purchase and sales of fentanyl related substances, and cut off network contacts and transaction channels.

To prevent the smuggling of fentanyl-related substances out of the country, China has cracked down on about 5,000 chemical brokers and companies peddling fentanyl precursors and closed down 14 chemical websites and more than 1,000 online shops.

At the international level, China has actively participated in bilateral and multilateral counternarcotic cooperation in forms of information sharing, the establishment of counternarcotics working groups and joint operations to combat drug crimes.

Through the mechanism of the counternarcotics working group, Chinese and American officers share information and intelligence, and exchange views on anti-drug cooperation. In 2019, based on U.S. intelligence, China eliminated a fentanyl trafficking network in Hebei Province with the prosecution and sentencing of nine main traffickers, marking the first and most prominent case of cooperation between China and the United States in combating fentanyl smuggling.

Beyond these concrete measures, China is driven by a profound goodwill to protect humanity from the devastating effects of drugs.

Shaped by the historical trauma of the Opium War, China has long upheld a zero-tolerance policy toward drug trade and smuggling, dedicating significant effort and adopting the most severe measures to combat drug-related crimes.

China resonates deeply with the principle found in both Confucian teachings – "What you do not wish for yourself, do not do to others" – and the Golden Rule in Matthew 7:12 – "In everything, do to others what you would have them do to you." This shared moral ethos fosters a natural empathy for the United States, which is currently grappling with the fentanyl crisis. As a result, China is fundamentally committed to assisting the U.S. in addressing the opioid epidemic.

Ironically, some American politicians have not only disregarded China's sincerity in anti-drug cooperation but have also promoted unfounded anti-China conspiracy theories. Such accusations lack credibility and risk undermining mutual trust between the two nations, as well as derailing bilateral efforts necessary to combat illicit drugs.

China has consistently demonstrated its commitment to cooperation, actively working with the United States to regulate the flow of fentanyl-related substances. To tackle its opioid epidemic, the U.S. should prioritize resolving disputes on drug control through communication and negotiation, rather than resorting to punitive measures such as tariffs to compel China's compliance.

The author Yu Feng is an assistant research fellow at the Institute of American Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

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