After reaching a trade agreement between the United States and China, on Monday, Beijing announced that it will include 13 kinds of fentanyl precursors in the controlled export list to the United States, Mexico, and Canada. According to China’s state media CCTV, the Ministry of Commerce, in conjunction with four other government departments, has implemented new export permit requirements for exporting 13 precursor chemicals to these three North American countries. These controlled substances include various piperidine derivatives and related compounds used in the manufacturing of fentanyl.
In October, Chinese leader Xi Jinping and US President Trump reached a trade agreement in South Korea, with China making 9 commitments and the US having 4 commitments. The Trump administration raised import tariffs on Chinese goods earlier this year citing the influx of Chinese-produced synthetic opioid ingredients into the United States.
As part of the US-China economic and trade agreement, Beijing has committed to “take significant measures to prevent fentanyl from entering the United States,” according to a White House statement. In accordance with the agreement, the US has reduced the fentanyl tariff rate imposed on China from 20% to 10% starting on Monday.
Given that Beijing has made similar commitments in the past but failed to fully deliver, the actual effect of this move remains to be observed. According to Reuters, FBI Director Kash Patel visited China last week to discuss drug and law enforcement issues with Chinese officials. However, during a routine press conference held by the Chinese Foreign Ministry in Beijing on Monday, when asked about Patel’s visit, they stated that there was no relevant information to provide.
In addition, both China and the US have suspended port fees for each other’s vessels for a year and halted investigations into maritime activities. This is seen as a positive step in the efforts to alleviate tensions between the two countries.