Donald Trump presses Xi Jinping on fentanyl precursors ahead of Washington summit

President Donald Trump has pressed Chinese President Xi Jinping to implement more aggressive measures to curb the export of drug precursor chemicals, in the lead-up to their scheduled summit in Washington. This comes a week after security agencies from both countries acknowledged progress in their joint counternarcotics efforts.

On Wednesday, the White House released the latest annual list of countries designated as major sources or transit points for illicit drugs that affect the United States, again labeling China as the world's leading producer of precursors for fentanyl, methamphetamine and other synthetic drugs. Trump personally raised the issue with Xi, stating that China last year introduced new licensing requirements for exporting these chemicals to North America, though he accused "criminals" in China of circumventing these controls using unregulated precursors.

The list, known as the Majors List, has been published annually for nearly four decades and includes China, India, Mexico and Panama for the upcoming US financial year starting October 1. In their upcoming talks, Trump and Xi are expected to address the issue of fentanyl and cross-border drug trafficking, which have been key concerns in recent US-China negotiations.