US and China talk on fentanyl trafficking
Al Jazeera
Talks on curbing fentanyl trade come after years of deterioration in relations on issues including COVID-19, human rights and Taiwan.
The United States and China have launched a joint anti-narcotics group to curb the production and trade of the highly addictive opioid fentanyl in the first sign of cooperation between the superpowers since bilateral relations soured.
The talks began on Tuesday after a US delegation led by Deputy Homeland Security Adviser Jen Daskal arrived in Beijing for the first joint meeting.
At a summit in November Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Joe Biden agreed to do more to cooperate on tackling companies that manufacture the precursor chemicals to make fentanyl and on cutting financing for the trade.
Fentanyl is a highly addictive synthetic opioid 50 times more potent than heroin. The US has said China is the primary source of the precursor chemicals synthesised into fentanyl by drug cartels in Mexico. China has denied the US claim.
The working group is seen as a positive development amid a deterioration in relations between the two countries over issues including human rights, trade tariffs, COVID-19 and Taiwan.
