US drug tsar Jim Carroll says he believes China is ‘absolutely committed’ to curbing fentanyl
- White House official in Beijing to discuss cooperation with anti-drug agencies
- Beijing and Washington remain at odds over root of fentanyl problem in US
“I am absolutely convinced the Chinese, starting with President Xi [Jinping] down through the Minister of Public Security Zhao [Kezhi], are absolutely committed to doing this,” Jim Carroll, director of National Drug Control Policy, an office colloquially referred to as “drug tsar”, said in Beijing after meeting his Chinese counterparts.
“I fully believe that what we learned on this trip is that the Chinese government, the Chinese people, are committed to this issue, both to save lives in the United States, but also to save lives in China. I believe that.”
Carroll, accompanied by acting commissioner for US Customs and Border Protection Mark Morgan and chief postal inspector Gary Barksdale, described the visit as “groundbreaking”.
US officials would have routine conversations and intelligence sharing at a higher level with Chinese authorities to ensure the two sides were “truly eradicating” traffickers, Barksdale said.
Morgan said he was encouraged by Chinese plans to build more laboratories, and that the US would be sharing data from new pollen signature chemical tests that can help identify the countries of origin of fentanyl samples.
US officials said China was the main source of illicit fentanyl, a cheap, opioid painkiller 50 times more potent than heroin, and related substances trafficked into the United States, much of them through international mail.