WASHINGTON — China is intensifying its crackdown on several essential ingredients used to manufacture illegal fentanyl, the White House announced, calling it “a valuable step forward.”
Three critical precursor chemicals—norfentanyl, 4-ap, and 1-boc-4-ap—used to produce fentanyl will now be subject to additional regulation and control.
This announcement marks the third since U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping reached an agreement in November to curb the export of chemicals used in fentanyl production.
“Since President Biden negotiated the resumption of counternarcotics cooperation with President Xi, dozens of deadly substances have now been scheduled by the [People’s Republic of China] PRC,” said White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) Director Dr. Rahul Gupta. “This is an important step in the right direction, and we will continue working with our international partners to take strong and urgent action against the global threat of synthetic drugs. The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to doing all we can to disrupt the supply of illicit fentanyl and save lives.”
Last week, senior officials from the U.S. and China met to discuss key initiatives, including increasing law enforcement cooperation, disrupting the illicit financing of transnational criminal organizations, and accelerating the scheduling of precursor chemicals.
U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns called it a positive step forward but signaled that there is still more work to do.
“We hope for further progress in the fight against fentanyl,” he said.
In a Reuters investigation this summer, journalists were able to buy everything needed to make $3 million worth of fentanyl from China and ship it to North America. All it took was $3,600 and a web browser.