China today rejected the United States accusation of being a “drug source country“ and described it as “malicious and baseless”, while defending its role as a “model” in the fight against drug trafficking.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning thus referred to an official report sent to the United States Congress in which China is included among the countries that supposedly do not do enough to combat drug trafficking.
“It has no basis and is pure malicious defamation. “China is firmly opposed and has lodged a protest with the United States,” Mao said at a press conference.
Mao stressed that the Chinese Government attaches “great importance” to anti-drug work and has adopted “strict measures” to control narcotic substances while recalling that China has included 456 types of drugs in its control list, which makes it one of the countries with the most regulated substances and with one of the strictest anti-drug laws in the world.
He also noted that China “actively cooperates with the international community” in anti-drug prevention, treatment, rehabilitation and education, and has contributed to regional and global security and stability.
On the contrary, he criticized that the United States is the “black hole” and “source of chaos” of the world drug problem, since “it consumes 80% of the world’s opiates with only 5% of the world’s population.”.
The tension between Washington and Mexico has increased in recent months as a result of the trafficking of fentanyl, an opiate that causes record numbers of overdose deaths in the United States, and both governments accuse each other of not doing enough to stop its movement and consumption.
In turn, the Mexican Government has denied that the substance is manufactured in its territory and has pointed its finger at China, which has also refused to be behind its export.
In an appearance before the Senate in May, US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, denounced that Beijing was not “genuinely cooperating” with Washington to stop drug trafficking.
