FBI Director Kash Patel visited Beijing last week to discuss fentanyl and law enforcement issues, sources familiar with the trip said. His visit followed a summit between U.S. president Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, during which both leaders highlighted a “consensus” on tackling fentanyl.
Patel, who arrived in Beijing on Friday, and held talks with Chinese officials on Saturday, was not officially announced by either government.
China’s Commerce Ministry announced that it would adjust its catalogue of drug-related precursor chemicals and require licenses for exporting certain chemicals to the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
The anti-drug authority also tightened oversight of other drug-making chemicals to prevent them entering illegal channels, particularly for high-risk countries such as the United States.
The visit comes after Trump halved tariffs on Chinese goods to 10% as part of the agreement with Xi, aimed at curbing fentanyl flow—the leading cause of overdose deaths in the U.S.
Trump said Xi would work “very hard to stop the flow” of the deadly synthetic opioid.
On October 31st, Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun met his U.S. counterpart, Defence Secretary Peter Hegseth on the sidelines of a Southeast Asian regional defence summit in Malaysia. During the meeting, Dong said China and the United States should build “trust” in order to co-exist.
