Mexico City, June 27, 2023 – Efforts against fentanyl must be global. The United States and Mexico are working together in this fight, promoting historic cooperation on both sides of the border to stop fentanyl trafficking.
We recognize the Government of Mexico’s announcement about the seizure of more than 1,700 kilograms of fentanyl in the first half of 2023.
In the United States, the Department of Justice (DOJ) made the unprecedented decision to indict Chinese companies and employees for trafficking fentanyl and its precursors into the United States and Mexico. The 200 kilograms of precursors seized from one of the companies in the DOJ indictment can produce enough fentanyl to kill 25 million people, which is almost equivalent to the combined population of Mexico City and the State of Mexico.
As we have noted, efforts against transnational criminal organizations must be joint, sustained, and comprehensive. These cases embody the results of our cooperation. By removing these synthetic drugs from circulation and stopping all stages of its illegal trade, we protect the lives of people in the U.S. and Mexico from this deadly drug, which is 100 times more powerful than morphine.
The poison from the precursors that produce fentanyl reaches not only the United States and Mexico, but also other parts of the world. To extend these global efforts that we started in North America, Secretary of State Antony Blinken called a high-level meeting to work together on a Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats.
This coalition will serve to expand trilateral efforts between the United States, Mexico, and Canada. As Mexico increasingly invests in strengthening the rule of law and we deepen information sharing mechanisms, the greater the results will be in protecting our peoples from this deadly scourge and from criminals who threaten the well-being of our nations.