Beijing (TDI): China on Sunday expressed strong dissatisfaction with and firm opposition to the U.S. decision to impose a 10-percent additional tariff on imports from China under the pretext of fentanyl-related issues.
A spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Public Security said that China is one of the nations with the strictest drug control policies and the most rigorous enforcement in the world.
He said that China has consistently fulfilled its international drug control obligations and actively engaged in global anti-drug cooperation with nations around the world, including the United States.
Despite the absence of widespread abuse domestically, China became the first nation in the world to officially schedule fentanyl-related substances as a class in 2019 out of humanitarian goodwill and at the request of the U.S. side, said the spokesperson.
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However, the US has not scheduled fentanyl-related substances as a class on a permanent basis, the spokesperson added.
Since China’s regulation, there have been no reports from the US of seizures of such substances originating from China, the spokesperson maintained.
China-US Make Progress in Drug Control Cooperation
In recent years, China and the US have made visible progress in practical collaboration on drug control in such areas as substance regulation, intelligence exchange, and case cooperation, producing tangible benefits, according to the spokesperson.
The spokesperson noted that the root cause of the fentanyl crisis in the US lies in itself, and reducing domestic drug demand and strengthening law enforcement cooperation are the fundamental solutions.
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Shifting blame onto other countries not only fails to resolve the issue but also erodes the foundation of trust and cooperation in the field of drug control between China and the US, said the spokesperson.
China urges the US to correct its wrongdoings and safeguard the hard-won progress in bilateral drug control collaboration, so as to promote the stable, healthy, and sustainable development of China-U.S. ties, the spokesperson said.
