If the issue is addressed, some experts said the tension between the world’s two largest economies could be further relaxed in August, after a 90-day truce agreed to during May talks in Geneva. Others expressed greater optimism, estimating a return to the 2020 trade deal that ended the escalatory spiral – albeit temporarily.
“It’s reasonable to view the fentanyl issue as a potential ‘third stage’ in US-China negotiations, particularly given how politically salient it has become in Washington,” said Matteo Giovannini, senior finance manager at the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and a non-resident associate fellow at the Centre for China and Globalisation, a Beijing-based think tank.
“While not traditionally a trade matter, the fentanyl crisis has been elevated to a core national security and public health concern in the US, which means it can be leveraged in broader bilateral talks.”
Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid. It has become the leading cause of death in the United States for people aged 18 to 45, according to the country’s Drug Enforcement Administration.
