Nearly a year into President Donald Trump’s second term in the White House, his pressure on China has appeared to be paying off — and potentially saving thousands of lives from opioid-related deaths.
Following a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the end of October, Trump told reporters on Air Force One that “on the scale from zero to 10, with 10 being the best, I would say the meeting was at 12. I think it was a 12.”
During the trade deal meeting on Oct. 30, the two leaders addressed several economic and security issues, including a resolution aimed at combating the drug crisis currently facing the U.S.
A day later, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce confirmed that the two countries “reached consensus on issues including anti-drug cooperation on fentanyl.”
On Monday, the U.S. cut tariffs on Chinese goods in reaction to its fentanyl deal, according to the New York Post: “Those levies are now 10%. That brings the average total of tariffs on Chinese goods from 57.6% down to 47.6% — lower than the 50% rate currently imposed on Brazil and India.”
And on Wednesday, FBI Director Kash Patel told the press that through a collaborative effort with Trump and his top Cabinet members, China and the U.S. have reached an agreement on reducing the influx of drugs into the country, specifically fentanyl.
Patel met with his Chinese counterpart at the Ministry of Public Security headquarters in Beijing and confirmed that “the Chinese government agreed on a plan to stop fentanyl precursors” to the U.S., Mexico and Canada. It was the first time an FBI director had traveled to China to address this matter with an audience in over a decade, Patel said.
That means, “The People’s Republic of China has fully designated and listed all 13 precursors utilized to make fentanyl. Furthermore, they have agreed to control seven chemical subsidiaries that are also utilized to produce this lethal drug, effective immediately,” he continued.
Patel further explained in a post on X that prohibiting the distribution of the precursors — the key ingredients in deadly drugs like fentanyl, which is 50 times stronger than heroin — will defuse the drug crisis in America by cutting off drug cartels’ supply.
In the last year alone, Patel said that nearly 100,000 people died in the U.S. from fentanyl overdoses.
“This year, under this president, the FBI has seized 1,900 kilograms of fentanyl so far,” he emphasized. “That is a 31% increase from the same time period last year. To put it in perspective, that’s enough fentanyl to kill 127 million Americans.”
“Essentially, President Trump has shut off the pipeline that creates fentanyl that kills tens of thousands of Americans,” he said. “This achievement will save lives.”