In the ongoing battle against the illicit fentanyl trade, Canada’s ambassador to China says Ottawa is looking to work with Beijing while, in contrast, Washington has imposed sanctions on the regime over precursor chemicals used in producing the deadly drug.
“I think we’re in early days of conversations about next steps,” Jennifer May said during an
interview on the CBC podcast “The House” aired Jan. 20. “RCMP is engaged. We have a liaison officer on the ground here. We have Mexico and the United States also engaged. So, I think there’s a lot of traction for taking an international approach to this.”
China is a
major fentanyl supplier, and U.S. authorities have taken steps to impose penalties on China-linked entities and individuals involved in the production and distribution of illicit fentanyl. This includes
sanctioning in April 2023
two China-based companies for allegedly “supplying precursor chemicals to drug cartels in Mexico for the production of illicit fentanyl intended for U.S. markets.”
In a separate effort to block precursor drugs from China that are made into fentanyl, in February 2023 Indiana Republican
Rep. Jim Banks introduced “The Stop CCP Fentanyl Act,” legislation that imposes sanctions on Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader Xi Jinping and other senior Chinese officials.
CBC host Catherine Cullen asked Ms. May: “The U.S. sanctioned some Chinese companies, but you’re talking about working together. Would you suggest that sanctioning is not the way Canada should go?”
Ms. May responded that she was specifically referring to “working with the Chinese government on fentanyl.”
“Basically, we can’t have a one-size-fits-all for as big and complicated a relationship as China,” she said. “We have to be trying to pursue where there are opportunities and recognizing where there are challenges.”
Before 2019, China was the primary source of U.S.-bound illicit fentanyl, fentanyl-related substances, and production equipment, with China-based traffickers supplying these substances directly to the United States through international mail and express consignment operations, says a Sept. 28, 2023,
report by the U.S. Congressional Research Service.
In May 2019, the Chinese regime added all fentanyl-related substances not already scheduled for control to its list of controlled narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances with non-medical use. However, this only served to shift trafficking patterns, the report said. Mexican transnational criminal organizations are now largely responsible for producing U.S.-consumed illicit fentanyl, primarily using China-sourced materials including precursor chemicals that aren’t internationally controlled and are legal in China to produce and export.
Upcoming Foreign Interference Inquiry
Ms. May’s remarks came days ahead of a foreign interference inquiry set to begin Jan. 29, which aims to investigate the CCP’s alleged meddling in Canada’s 2019 and 2021 federal elections. The ambassador said it will be “deeply uncomfortable” for the Chinese regime as issues related to Chinese interference come under scrutiny during the public inquiry.“The fact that we’re very concerned about it, the fact that we’re looking into it in a very holistic and whole-of-country way, the fact that there are so many different aspects that are coming to light—whether it’s malicious cyber activities, disinformation, intimidation and harassment, the threats to our economic security, overseas police stations—all of this, I think there’s a reality that this is going to be something that is going to be deeply uncomfortable for the Chinese government,” Ms. May said.
In the past year, media reports citing national security officials and sources have
accused the CCP of interference and espionage in Canada. Allegations include a
disinformation campaign during the 2021 elections that targeted then-Conservative MP Kenny Chiu, which Mr. Chiu and observers including
academics and
think tanks have said led to his
losing his seat in Parliament.
Other MPs reportedly targeted by CCP interference and intimidation include
Conservative MP Michael Chong and
NDP MP Jenny Kwan, both known for being outspoken about the regime’s human rights abuses.
Mr. Chong and
Ms. Kwan have both been granted full standing in the upcoming inquiry, allowing them to question witnesses and access classified documents.
The ambassador said that in raising interference concerns, Ottawa has received “pretty firm pushback” from the Chinese side.
Asked if she has any doubt the Chinese regime will try to interfere with future Canadian elections, Ms. May highlighted the importance of upholding the democratic system.
“The most important thing is for us to try to be resilient, to be able to push back, and to be able to make sure that we’ve got strong, robust democratic systems and processes,” she said.
Then, “whether there’s a threat from [China or] anywhere, we’re ready to withstand it, and Canadian society has the tools and understanding to be able to process any kinds of attempts to interfere in our processes from anywhere,” she said.
According to a February 2023 research study published in medical journal
The Lancet, “Since 2016, more than 30,000 people have died from opioid-related overdoses in Canada,” and “Post-2020, >75%—while with stark regional differences—of opioid deaths in Canada have involved fentanyl.”
According to U.S. Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson, “Illicit fentanyl is responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans each year.”
