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Sullivan and Wang Yi Meeting Confirmed After Bangkok Talks

The governments of the United States and China will hold the first working group meeting to jointly address the synthetic drug fentanyl issue on the 30th (local time).

According to Bloomberg on the 28th (local time), the holding of this working group meeting was arranged after Jake Sullivan, White House National Security Advisor, and Wang Yi, member of the Chinese Communist Party Central Political Bureau, met in Bangkok for two days starting on the 26th.

The two met to discuss follow-up measures to the US-China summit and consulted on international issues such as the Korean Peninsula and relations between China and Taiwan. A telephone summit between the two leaders is expected to be arranged this spring.

Sullivan, U.S. National Security Advisor, and Wang Yi, Member of the CPC Central Politburo [Photo by Yonhap News]

This high-level US-China meeting is the first since President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed last November to resume cooperation on drug eradication.

Fentanyl is a type of opioid painkiller, and in the United States, fentanyl overdose has become a serious social problem, ranking as the leading cause of death among people aged 18 to 49. According to a BBC report, fentanyl-related deaths reached a record high of 109,680 in 2022.

So far, the Biden administration has repeatedly urged the Chinese government to restrain Chinese companies supplying fentanyl precursors to Mexican drug cartels in order to solve the problem. In October last year, the US government announced sanctions against Chinese companies and individuals suspected of involvement in producing fentanyl precursors (chemicals necessary for fentanyl synthesis).

The US Treasury Department explained that 12 China-based companies, 13 individuals, as well as 2 Canada-based companies and 1 individual were included in the sanctions this time. Subsequently, the US Department of Justice indicted 8 Chinese companies and 12 employees of those companies, but arrests were not made due to the Chinese government's passive cooperation in investigations.

China's lukewarm attitude is interpreted as having changed after the US-China summit last November. According to a Washington Post (WP) report, a senior US administration official said, "Since November, the resumption of communication has led to a significant breakthrough in blocking the supply of fentanyl precursors to the United States." The official added, "There is information that Chinese authorities' actions against Chinese synthetic drug and chemical precursor suppliers began immediately after the summit," and "We have seen those companies shut down and their international accounts blocked."

A senior US official emphasized at a briefing on the 28th, "This meeting is a key part of the joint efforts by both countries to address the fentanyl issue."

Meanwhile, earlier this month, Liu Jinchao, deputy head of the Chinese Communist Party's International Liaison Department, who visited the United States, held meetings with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Deputy National Security Advisor John Finer.