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1 [1] (September 28, 2023)

handle is hein.crs/govemzv0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Updated September 28, 2023 China Primer: Illicit Fentanyl and China's Role Addressing illicit fentanyl in the context of the ongoing opioid crisis in the United States is a domestic and foreign policy issue for Congress. In addressing the international dimension of the problem, policymakers have endeavored to stop foreign-sourced fentanyl, fentanyl-related substances (i.e., analogues), and chemical inputs (i.e., precursors) from entering the United States. Early in the U.S. opioid epidemic, the People's Republic of China (PRC, or China) was the primary source of illicit fentanyl, but such direct flows have reportedly ceased. U.S. counternarcotics policy with regard to China has shifted to preventing PRC-sourced fentanyl precursors from entering the U.S.-bound fentanyl supply chain via third countries, and targeting illicit fentanyl-related financial flows linked to China. U.S.-PRC cooperation on drug control issues has been severely strained since 2020. Background Fentanyl is a potent synthetic opioid that has been used medically as a painkiller and an anesthetic since it was first synthesized in 1959. Due to fentanyl's potential for abuse and addiction, the United Nations (U.N.) placed it under international control in 1964. Domestically, fentanyl is regulated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), pursuant to the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970, as amended (21 U.S.C. §§801 et seq.). Controlling the production and trafficking of fentanyl and its analogues has emerged as a major international drug policy concern for the United States. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that synthetic opioids (primarily fentanyl-related substances) may have resulted in more than 77,000 overdose deaths between May 2022 and April 2023. Moreover, traffickers appear to be marketing a growing number of fentanyl analogues for nonmedical, often unregulated, use. In November 2021, the International Narcotics Control Board-an independent expert body that monitors governments' compliance with U.N. drug control treaties- reported the existence of more than 150 fentanyl-related substances with no currently known legitimate uses. The U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime estimates that laboratories could potentially synthesize thousands of other fentanyl analogues. As of May 2023, more than 30 fentanyl-related substances, including precursors, are scheduled for international control pursuant to the U.N. Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961, as amended, and the U.N. Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988. U.N. member states first subjected fentanyl precursors to international control in 2017, agreeing to list the precursors N-Phenethyl-4-piperidone (NPP) and 4-Anilino-N- phenethylpiperidine (ANPP) on Table I of the 1988 Convention. (In February 2018, consistent with the U.N. decision, the PRC implemented corresponding domestic controls.) In March 2022, U.N. member states subjected three more fentanyl precursors to international control: N- Phenyl-4-piperidinamine (4-AP), tert-Butyl 4- (phenylamino) piperidine-1-carboxylate (boc-4-AP), and norfentanyl. Sources and Trafficking Pathway Prior to 2019, China was the primary source of U.S.-bound illicit fentanyl, fentanyl-related substances, and production equipment. PRC traffickers supplied fentanyl and fentanyl- related substances directly to the United States via international mail and express consignment operations. Trafficking patterns changed after the PRC imposed class- wide controls over all fentanyl-related substances, effective May 2019. Today, Mexican transnational criminal organizations are largely responsible for the production of U.S.-consumed illicit fentanyl, using primarily PRC- sourced materials, including precursor chemicals that are not internationally controlled (and are correspondingly legal to produce in and export out of China). According to recent U.S. Department of the Treasury assessments, Mexican cartels are increasingly working with PRC money laundering organizations. Fentanyl destined for nonmedical consumption may be produced in clandestine laboratories. Pharmaceutical preparations of fentanyl may also be diverted through theft and fraudulent prescriptions. Legitimate chemical and pharmaceutical companies produce fentanyl analogues and precursors that are not domestically or internationally regulated. In February 2022, the final report of the U.S. Commission on Combating Synthetic Opioid Trafficking (established pursuant to §7221 of P.L. 116-92), concluded that the PRC's chemical and pharmaceutical sectors have outpaced the government's efforts to regulate them, creating opportunities for unscrupulous vendors to export chemicals needed in their illegal manufacture. Addressing Ch ina's RoIe With respect to the PRC, the Joseph R. Biden Jr. Administration's April 2022 National Drug Control Strategy prioritizes increased collaboration on shared drug priorities and continued engagement to reduce diversion of uncontrolled precursor chemicals. In testimony before the House in July 2023, Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) Director Rahul Gupta said that the United States has adopted a multipronged approach to address precursors from China. It includes raising precursor diversion in every meeting with PRC counterparts and working multilaterally to expand U.N. scheduling of synthetic drugs. In July 2023, the United States also launched a Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats, including fentanyl. Wsson I Resedrch Service Ih leasaive dea si n'e 1914

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