Drug control body says US smearing China over fentanyl

China's drug control authority has expressed strong dissatisfaction with the United States' smearing of China and sanctions on Chinese companies and individuals for allegedly involved in drugs, pointing out that the chemicals are ordinary commodities.

Since the beginning of this year, the US has imposed sanctions on several Chinese enterprises and individuals twice on the grounds that their products, such as chemicals and tablet presses, had been smuggled into Mexico to manufacture fentanyl, which the US claims to have led to an abuse of fentanyl in the US.

In response, the China National Narcotic Control Commission said on Wednesday that it is an attempt by the US to slander and suppress China, stating that the products mentioned by the US are ordinary commodities, not subject to control in line with the international drug control conventions and the Chinese laws.

"Drug control cooperation between China and US should be carried out under the framework of domestic laws, and bilateral law enforcement cooperation should be developed on the track of the rule of law," Yu Haibin, deputy head of the commission, told a news conference.

"The US' claim that the precursors for the processing of fentanyl in Mexico come from China, but the chemicals and related equipment involved are not regulated in accordance with the international drug control conventions, or the Chinese and Mexican laws," he said.

He stressed that China has always fulfilled its obligations under the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, with the implementation of an import and export licensing and international verification system for precursor chemicals.

He said that China has taken the lead in regulating the entire class of fentanyl substances even though there is no fentanyl abuse in China, but the US, which is deeply affected by the abuse of fentanyl, has not formally regulated that, and frequently hyped the so-called Chinese chemicals flowing into Mexico.

"Reducing domestic demand and supply in the US, we believe, is the root solution to the abuse of fentanyl in the US. Shifting blame on other countries cannot solve the problem from the root," he said. "We hope to see more meaningful and concrete actions by the US."

Underlining that Chinese government has consistently and resolutely fought against drugs, he added, "China is ready to work with other nations to promote the establishment of cooperative relations featuring equality, mutual trust and win-win cooperation."

On Wednesday, the commission also issued a report on China's drug control in 2022, in which, it said that China's drug-related crimes hit a near 10-year low last year, with sustained decrease in the scale of drug supply, consumption and abuse.

According to data provided by the commission, the number of drug-related crimes solved by Chinese police dropped to 35,000 last year from more than 160,000 in 2015, under the country's strong anti-drug crackdown.