China tightens fentanyl precursor controls after FBI director visit, Patel says

After Patel met with his Chinese counterparts, the Chinese government agreed to designate all 13 precursors and to control seven chemical subsidiaries used to make the lethal drug that has been blamed for thousands of American deaths each year, the FBI director announced at a White House press briefing on Wednesday.

"Essentially, President Trump has shut off the pipeline that creates fentanyl that kills tens of thousands of Americans," Patel told reporters. "These substances are now banned, and they will no longer be utilized by the Mexican drug trafficking organizations."

Patel also credited President Donald Trump's recent meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. 

"This was only possible due to President Trump's historic engagement with President XI just a few short weeks ago that set the stage for today's announcement," Patel said.

In 2023, the United States listed China as a major illicit drug producer. 

When President Donald Trump took office, he imposed 10% tariffs on Beijing, accusing China of failing to curb the flow of chemicals used to make fentanyl. In response, China imposed its own tariffs. 

Trump has said Beijing has enabled the illicit fentanyl production in Mexico and elsewhere by subsidizing the export of the precursor chemicals needed to produce these deadly drugs and failing to prevent Chinese companies from selling the precursors to criminal cartels. 

The FBI has seized 1,900 kilograms of fentanyl this year, representing a 31% increase from the same time last year, Patel said. He noted that the amount is enough to kill 127 million Americans. 

The FBI director reiterated to the American people that nearly 100,000 people died of a fentanyl overdose last year alone.

"That was the sole purpose of my trip to China to eliminate these precursors," Patel added. "And if successful, we would suffocate the drug trafficking organizations' ability to manufacture fentanyl in places like Mexico. This was the first time an FBI director has been to China in over a decade, and received the audience with his counterpart to address this matter directly." "And again, thanks to President Trump's direct engagement, President Xi, the government of China committed fully to my engagement there on the ground in Beijing at a level never seen before," Patel said.