US intel names India, China in fentanyl supply as Trump targets tariffs

In a report published last year, India was mentioned only as one of the countries from which Mexican groups were sourcing chemicals. China, on the other hand, was named as the primary supplier

In a first, the US government has named India alongside China as a "state actor" contributing to the supply of precursor chemicals used by criminal organisations to produce fentanyl.

 

The report, released on Wednesday (IST) by Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard, said fentanyl claimed the lives of over 52,000 US citizens in the 12 months ending October 2024. It noted that fentanyl remains among the most lethal drugs trafficked into the US.

 

Earlier, India was only listed among several countries from which Mexican groups were sourcing precursor chemicals. China, by contrast, was consistently identified as the primary supplier.

 

The report stated: “Nonstate groups are often enabled, both directly and indirectly, by state actors, such as China and India, as sources of precursors and equipment for drug traffickers.”

 

The assessment comes as US President Donald Trump has reiterated that combating opioid abuse remains a top priority. According to a National Public Radio (NPR) report, Robert F Kennedy Jr, Secretary at the US Department of Health and Human Services, said that while drug-related deaths had started to decline, the Trump administration continues to treat the opioid crisis as a national security emergency.

 

The NPR report also noted that Trump has drawn a link between fentanyl smuggling and the tariffs imposed on Canada, Mexico, and China.

 

On February 1, the US imposed an additional 10 per cent tariff on Chinese imports, citing China’s failure to take sufficient action against fentanyl trafficking.

 

Indian firms under radar

 

In January this year, two pharmaceutical companies based in Surat, Gujarat, were charged in the US for smuggling chemicals used to produce fentanyl. According to the office of district attorney for the Eastern District of New York, the two firms—Raxuter Chemicals and Athos Chemicals—were charged with criminal conspiracy to distribute and import these substances into the US, Mexico, and elsewhere.

 

Recently, on March 18, Gujarat’s Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) arrested two individuals for allegedly exporting precursor chemicals used in the manufacture of fentanyl and other banned psychotropic substances. These chemicals were reportedly being sent by air to drug mafias in Mexico, Guatemala, and other countries.

 

What is the fentanyl crisis in the US?

 

The United States has been battling a fentanyl crisis that has significantly worsened the opioid epidemic. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid, estimated to be 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, making it highly effective for pain relief. However, its high potency also makes it extremely dangerous due to its potential for overdose, according to the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

 

According to the DNI report, fentanyl first emerged as a major street drug in the US around 2012. It displaced heroin and prescription painkillers as the most dangerous opioid sold by criminal networks.

 

During Trump’s first term as president, deaths linked to fentanyl surged—rising more than 30 per cent in 2020 alone.

 

According to a Reuters report, fentanyl is now the leading cause of drug overdose deaths in the country. In the last decade, over 450,000 Americans have died from synthetic opioid overdoses, and nearly a million others are addicted.