Chinese Embassy in US strongly condemns US sanctions on 13 Chinese entities, individuals
Global Times
By Global Times Published: May 31, 2023 09:52 AM
The Chinese Embassy in the US on Wednesday strongly condemned US sanctions on 13 China-based entities and individuals, vowing to do what is necessary to safeguard the lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies and individuals.
On Tuesday, the US Department of the Treasury sanctioned 13 China-based entities and individuals, citing their so-called involvement in the international proliferation of equipment used to produce illicit drugs.
"While saying it hopes to resume counter-narcotics cooperation with China on various occasions, the US has again brazenly sanctioned Chinese individuals and entities, which is a serious violation of the lawful rights and interests of the companies and individuals concerned," the Chinese Embassy in the US said in a statement on its website published Wednesday.
The pretext of the US fabricated claims this time is that these Chinese entities and individuals are involved in the sale of pill press machines, dye molds, and other equipment to the US and Mexico. However, it is widely known that pill press machines and dye molds are common commodities with legitimate uses and are widely used in normal industrial production. According to common practice across the world, ensuring that imported goods are not used for illicit purposes is not only the basic responsibility of the enterprises, but also the legal obligation of the government of the importing countries, the embassy said.
The Chinese government takes a firm stance on counter-narcotics. Guided by a humanitarian spirit, we have worked with the US to help solve its fentanyl abuse. In May 2019, China became the first country in the world to officially schedule fentanyl-related substances as a class, which has played an important role in preventing illicit manufacturing, trafficking and abuse of the substance.
The US, however, in disregard of China's goodwill, has used so-called "human rights issue" in Xinjiang to impose sanctions on the Institution of Forensic Science of the Ministry of Public Security and the National Narcotics Laboratory of China. Now the US is imposing new sanctions on Chinese companies and individuals in an attempt to blame China for its own domestic fentanyl problem. This has seriously eroded the foundation for China-US counter-narcotics cooperation, the embassy said.
The US itself is the root cause of its drug problem. With 5 percent of the world's population, the US consumes 80 percent of the world's opioids. Yet the US still has not permanently scheduled fentanyl-related substances as a class. As China and the rest of the world have strengthened control of fentanyl-related substances, the fentanyl issue in the US has been deteriorating and cutting short even more lives, according to the Chinese embassy.
The US needs to engage in serious reflections on this issue. Instead of working to reduce the demand for drugs at home, strengthen management of prescription drugs and step-up public awareness campaigns about the harm of narcotics, the US has resorted to grossly sanctioning other countries in an attempt to mislead the public and deflect blame for its inaction. This is clear to the American people and the rest of the world, the statement read.
"The US sanctions against Chinese companies and citizens will add more obstacles to China-US counter-narcotics cooperation. Such moves hurt others as well as the US itself. If the US truly wants to solve its drug problem, it should respect facts, reflect on itself, correct its wrongdoing, and stop shifting the blame," the embassy stressed.
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