China isn’t fulfilling its promise to control fentanyl smuggling into the U.S., according to White House trade adviser Peter Navarro.
“They [China] seem to be in denial about the whole fentanyl issue,” he told Maria Bartiromo, adding that the administration hasn’t seen “anything slow down at all.”
Chinese officials have promised to take a tougher position on fentanyl and other opioids being exported to the U.S. However, according to Navarro, the issue has spiraled “out of control.”
“Just in the last several weeks there was a ship interdicted by the Mexican Navy coming from Shanghai … that had 23,000 kilograms of fentanyl and that’s enough to kill the state of Florida,” he explained.
U.S. officials have accused China of being the chief supplier of illegal fentanyl, where its use and availability have been steadily rising each year.
“By the end of today, another 100 Americans will die from made-in-China fentanyl and other opioids. By the end of the week another 1,000 Americans and over 50,000 in a year,” he said. “So this is one of the seven deadly sins that we need to deal with.”