Opinion For US’s fentanyl crisis, another ‘war on drugs’ is not the solution. Working with countries such as India and China is

This assessment of India and China as “state actors” follows the logic of the century-long US “war on drugs” approach that had failed to deliver on the promise of curbing the domestic demand for drugs as well as their influx into America. Although this is the first such report to include India in this unflattering capacity, the history of US concerns about India and China in the fentanyl precursor chemicals trade — involving Mexican cartels responsible for virtually all shipments into the US — goes further back in time.

A September 2016 US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) report was the first document to list China as a source of fentanyl precursors, although an earlier 2013 Department of State report had highlighted the country as the primary source of trafficked fentanyl into the US. The India link was first revealed when India’s Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) took down an illicit fentanyl laboratory in Indore in January 2018 acting on inputs provided by the DEA, followed later that year by arrests of individuals with links to the Mexican Sinaloa cartel.

Since then, both countries have taken several proactive domestic measures to address the illegal manufacture, spillovers from legitimate production into the black market, and export of fentanyl precursor chemicals, along with crackdowns on local and international criminal networks involved in the trade. On May 1, 2019, China became the first country to officially control all forms of fentanyl as a class of drugs.

With stricter regulations in China, the illicit manufacture and trade in precursors started moving to other locations. India started emerging as a hub of illicit production and export by early 2018 and authorities were quick to respond. The first set of export controls on fentanyl precursors were put in place as early as February 2018, and by January 2020, strictest controls were imposed on the export of most fentanyl precursor chemicals. However, there are some gaps in the control of newly emerging alternative precursors and analogues that the Indian and Chinese governments could address as a priority in light of the recent US report.

US engagements with India and China through diplomatic and multilateral channels resulted in the dismantling of many illegal production units and disruption of global supply routes. The creation of a US-India Counternarcotics Working Group in 2020 to focus on fentanyl and other opioids is a noteworthy bilateral framework between these two nations. Likewise, the US-China Bilateral Drug Intelligence Working Group and the Counter Narcotics Working Group have been engaging on the issue. India and China have some of the strictest drug control laws globally too.

The trafficking of synthetic drugs like fentanyl are upshots of a new global drugs economy where TCOs have exploited global shipping networks and trade infrastructure and technologies such as cryptocurrencies and the “dark net” to create new distribution channels and expand markets. The challenges in tracking and suppressing TCOs have been noted by the United Nations Office on Crime and Drugs (UNODC) and other enforcement agencies across the world.

Unlike traditional drugs like heroin and cocaine which are dependent on certain geographical areas for supply of raw materials like poppy and coca, the production of synthetic drugs relies on illicit sourcing of chemicals that have legitimate uses and are essential in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals and other industrial products. Both China and India have large and growing export-orientated pharmaceutical and chemical industrial sectors. Increasingly larger trade volumes bring with them challenges in monitoring shipments, which, in turn, creates opportunities for mislabelling of consignments and use of third-country transhipments, loopholes that are exploited by TCOs to operate. Another challenge in controlling the illicit trade in synthetics is the emergence of new fentanyl-like precursors on a regular basis. These compounds are being synthesised by chemists in India and elsewhere by tweaking molecular structures to create new chemicals that circumvent existing legislation and enable TCOs to stay ahead of the “regulatory curve”.

In early March 2025, China released a white paper titled “Controlling Fentanyl-Related Substances — China’s Contribution”. This report provided data on actions taken by China to control illegal production and shipments and reiterated China’s commitment to drug control as a responsible major global power. It also highlighted that the fentanyl issue was being used as a US strategy to impose higher tariffs on China, alluding to the orders that President Donald Trump signed on February 1, 2025, issuing tariffs against China, Mexico and Canada due to the continued flow of illicit fentanyl and its precursor chemicals into the US. The successful bilateral US-China dialogue on fentanyl that was revived in January 2024 after a hiatus during Covid stands at risk of being derailed today.

Given the nature of the evolving illegal drug trafficking challenge and the increasingly sophisticated functioning and growing influence of TCOs, the US needs to prioritise international cooperation, promote multilateralism and foster the creation of a global fentanyl governance framework. A US-China-India trilateral working group seems to be the need of the hour and could generate goodwill and build mutual trust. Alongside, cooperative efforts like a India-China drug intelligence sharing mechanism, and the formulation of a harmonised regulatory framework on fentanyl precursors could close loopholes exploited by TCOs. In addition, the formation of a regional Asian Drugs Dialogue mechanism would enable better coordination and monitoring as TCOs involved in the illicit fentanyl trade are also key players in the methamphetamine trade in Southeast Asia.

In light of the US government’s latest assessment of the fentanyl issue, India, China and Mexico should make efforts to deepen their commitment to tackling this grave public health concern that has national security dimensions, and not view it solely in light of the current administration’s tariff-related policies and actions. This calls for greater cooperation and engagement at the diplomatic level between these nations, the strengthening of multilateral organisations like the UNODC, and the development of coordinated mechanisms and partnerships at local, regional and global levels to deal with TCOs and the wider illicit drugs trade. The illegal drugs problem is a global one and only multifaceted, collaborative approaches can address the issue at its root and save lives in the US and around the world. The threat posed by the illegal drugs trade, therefore, makes for an impassioned argument for greater engagement of the US with the rest of the world, not less.

The writer is research fellow at International Centre for Drug Policy Studies, Shanghai University