Global Courant 2023-04-11 22:22:20
The White House on Tuesday outlined its strategy to stem the massive and deadly flow of fentanyl into the US, including increased cooperation with the private sector and an effort to close loopholes — even as tensions with Mexico over the issue have increased.
“At a time when the global supply chain of illicit fentanyl has changed the way illicit substances are produced and traded, the Biden-Harris administration announces a strengthened government-wide approach to saving lives through the trafficking of illicit fentanyl and its precursors in American communities,” the White House said in a statement.
There have been fentanyl deaths in recent years, with more than 70,000 deaths by 2021 attributed to overdoses of the drug – which is 50-100 times more potent than morphine and can be deadly in small doses.
The drug is primarily made in Mexico by drug cartels using precursors from China and then shipped across the US-Mexico land border.
On Tuesday, the White House outlined additional measures it is taking to shut down the supply chains used to bring the opioid to the US. Specifically, it said it is leading a “coordinated global effort with international partners” to disrupt drug trafficking.
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Border Patrol makes fentanyl arrest in San Clemente, California. (U.S. Border Patrol)
It noted that it has lobbied the UN to control three additional precursors and is building a “global coalition” to develop solutions, “stimulate national action and create synergies and leverage among like-minded countries that agree that combating of illicit synthetic drugs a global policy priority.” Most recently, President Biden brought this coalition forward directly in a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Biden said the US and Canada are “announcing a commitment to build a new global coalition of like-minded countries led by Canada and the United States to address this crisis.”
The White House also said it is improving coordination and information sharing among government law enforcement agencies, including tracking pill presses used to make fake pills, increasing bulk cash seizures at the border, as well as helping the origins, shipments and destinations of precursors and equipment. The White House’s strategy also includes disrupting traffickers’ access to US financial markets and combating money laundering.
In addition, the administration says private sector work is “accelerating” around the world to combat how traffickers will use commercial enterprises to access resources, use raw materials and technology to conduct their business.
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“To disrupt these criminals’ access to capital and materials, the Biden-Harris administration is launching a government-wide effort, in conjunction with the private sector, to strengthen cooperation with international and domestic express carriers to move more illegal substances and manufacturing materials ; educate companies on how to protect themselves from the sale and distribution of dual-use chemicals and equipment that can be used to produce illicit fentanyl; and intensify global engagement with private chemical industries,” the statement said.
Finally, it calls on Congress to close loopholes, including by permanently including illegal fentanyl-related substances in Schedule I — drugs with no accepted medical use and high potential for abuse.
The White House has also highlighted its continued crackdown and arrest operations, as well as an increase in seizures at ports of entry on the southern border.
The fact sheet comes as Republicans have pointed to the ongoing border crisis as a possible source of increased fentanyl flows. Democrats and the administration have noted that most seizures occur at ports of entry, not between ports.
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Meanwhile, calls for more action from Republican lawmakers — who have called for cartels to be labeled terrorist organizations and military action against drug labs in Mexico — have prompted a fiery response from Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.
He has threatened to launch an “information campaign” against Republicans calling for such actions, while falsely claiming that fentanyl is not produced in Mexico. He has also lashed out at the Biden administration for violating his country’s human rights record.
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Most recently, he pleaded with China to do more to stop shipments from Beijing – while also lashing out at “gross threats” from the US.
“They wrongly blame us for problems that are largely related to their loss of values, their welfare crisis,” he angrily told Chinese President Xi Jinping. “These positions are in themselves disrespectful and a threat to our sovereignty, and moreover they are based on an absurd, manipulative, propagandistic and demagogic attitude.”
