Chinese President Xi Jinping has tentatively agreed to crack down on companies manufacturing and selling chemicals used to make fentanyl, a deadly drug that has overrun American cities after being illegally trafficked into the country.
According to those familiar with the negotiations, it has been reported that the Chinese leader and U.S. President Joe Biden are scheduled to meet for four hours while the two attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in San Francisco, where the disastrous effects of fentanyl and other drugs are prevalent.
Bloomberg reported that if the deal between the two nations is finalized, “China would go after chemical companies to stem the flow of both fentanyl and the source material used to make the deadly synthetic opioid, according to the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the agreement.”
According to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, the increase of fentanyl in American cities can be “traced back” to Chinese industries which “manufacture vast quantities of the drug and its analogues [sic] to export to the western hemisphere with little regulatory oversight.” The synthetic opioid is then trafficked into the U.S. through the open southern border and exported into already drug-infested cities.
Following city-wide testing in Seattle and Portland, TPUSA previously reported that more than half of public transit vehicles tested positive for fentanyl, while all of them tested positive for remnants of methamphetamine. San Francisco has seen a similar crisis unfold, which is why California Governor Gavin Newsom and city Mayor London Breed received such significant backlash following officials’ speedy cleanup of downtown ahead of Xi Jinping’s visit.
Homeless encampments were removed, needles and trash were cleaned from the streets, and sidewalks were power-washed almost overnight in preparation for APEC. Governor Newsom answered his critics, who accused officials of only conducting the city-wide sweep because global and industry leaders were going to be in town, by telling them, “that’s true.”
Now, many who criticized the city’s temporary fix for homelessness and drug usage are highlighting the irony that all it took was a short visit from the leader of the Chinese Communist Party to get American cities back on track.
This piece first appeared at TPUSA.
