Illustration: Chen Xia/GT

Whenever China-US cooperation makes actual progress, there tends to be rhetoric in the US aimed at undermining the momentum, with the crackdown on fentanyl being the latest example. Recently, some individuals in the US have once again begun to blame China for the fentanyl issue, claiming that China is waging a "new Opium War" to "hollow out" the US from within. A report by the US Congress in April directly slandered "China as the ultimate geographic source of the fentanyl crisis." These voices make it clear who is undermining China-US cooperation in combating fentanyl.

The American politicians hyping up such claims appear to be suffering from persecutory delusion. They envision China as an omnipotent, mysterious force that controls Americans, leading them to involuntarily abuse fentanyl, which has resulted in a large number of personal and family tragedies. They have likely heard about the huge damage caused to China by the Opium War launched by the West, thus they are attempting to portray themselves as victims, invoking an old Chinese saying "give somebody a dose of his own medicine." In their eyes, the current fentanyl crisis in the US is an act of revenge by China. At the same time, these American politicians attempt to prove that China's "revenge" is unjustified because "the US did not participate in the Opium War" and "the harm caused by fentanyl to the US far exceeds the costs of China in the Opium War." 

These remarks, characterized by confusing logic and filled with historical fallacies, are viewed as ridiculous by Chinese society. Their only function is probably to reflect the guilty conscience of Western political elites regarding historical issues. China is a victim of the Opium War, and these politicians fail to understand and appreciate how deeply repulsed Chinese society, which experienced the Opium War, feels about drugs. In a certain sense, the Opium War is an important reason for the current antipathy and zero-tolerance attitude toward drugs in Chinese society. When it comes to counter-narcotics, China has the strongest determination, the most relentless policy and one of the best records in the world. In terms of drug control, it is not an exaggeration to say that the US should be a "student" that should humbly learn from China.

The fentanyl issue in the US is not manufactured by China, nor is the abuse of fentanyl a problem originating from China. The root of the problem lies in the fact that American society's demand for narcotic and psychotropic drugs cannot be met through legal, safe, and effective channels. The fentanyl crisis in the US began with the over-prescription of medications, particularly opioids. An article published by the American Addiction Centers in 2022 stated that even patients taking fentanyl as prescribed by doctors could become addicted, yet some doctors prescribe lethal doses of fentanyl to patients. A study on cancer treatment indicated that up to half of American patients should not have been prescribed fentanyl in the first place. This is just the tip of the iceberg regarding the failures of the US in managing the fentanyl issue. As Al Jazeera said, it is "a disaster of its own making."

In fact, illegal fentanyl entered the US market as early as the 1980s, and multiple illegal labs have been discovered within the country, but American politicians often avoid these historical facts. With only 5 percent of the world's population, Americans consume 80 percent of the world's opioids, something that any reasonable person can recognize as abnormal. 

The enormous demand for fentanyl substances in the US is the root cause of the crisis, and it is this excessively high domestic demand for these drugs that drives the development of the illegal fentanyl market. In addition, why is the same chemical, which is only a raw material for industrial and pharmaceutical production in many countries, turned into a source of problem in the US? These are issues that American politicians must face up to.

China's attitude toward supporting the US in combating the abuse of fentanyl is sincere, and its actions are pragmatic. We are willing to strengthen drug control cooperation with the US and actively participate in global drug governance. This reflects China's responsibility as a major power. The drug control mechanisms of China and the US have a history of over 30 years of professional cooperation within both bilateral and multilateral frameworks.

Following the meeting between the two heads of state in San Francisco last November, relevant departments from both sides have fully resumed drug control cooperation and made substantial progress. Starting September 1, China added three Fentanyl precursors, identified by the United Nations drug control mechanism, to its list of controlled precursor chemicals, imposing stricter oversight over their production. This marked a "valuable step forward" in China-US drug control cooperation. These achievements have not come easily, and the US should cherish them. 

If the US truly wants to address the fentanyl issue, it must first respect the cooperative efforts in drug control between China and the US, stop politicizing the fentanyl issue, abandon the irresponsible practice of applying pressure through public opinion, reduce its own internal conflicts regarding the fentanyl issue, and sincerely return to pragmatic cooperation. Seeking China's cooperation and support while simultaneously smearing and labeling it will only make the US fentanyl problem more difficult to resolve.