US, China launch working group to address opioid crisis

US officials have claimed that Beijing has acted against suppliers of chemicals and precursors in China to curb the flow of opioids since the Xi-Biden bilateral.

“We saw a company shut down. We saw international payment accounts blocked”, a senior Biden administration official said on Sunday, citing “reductions” in precursor chemicals seized at some US airports originating from China.

Overdoses involving opioids killed over 80,000 people in the US in 2021, according to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. Nearly 88 per cent of those deaths involved low-cost and highly potent synthetic opioids such as fentanyl or similar drugs.

More people in the US between the ages of 18 and 49 die from fentanyl than any other cause.

According to the US Drug Enforcement Administration, China is a “primary source” of ingredients used in manufacturing fentanyl and fentanyl-related substances illegally brought into the US largely by Mexican cartels.

US officials on Sunday said that China had initiated “some conversations” with Mexico, adding “this is going to have to be an issue that goes beyond just the US, China and Mexico, Canada” since many countries were battling illicit opioids.