Trump praises Modi's anti-drug push as India appears on US narcotics list
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's efforts to curb illicit opium poppy cultivation, while naming India, China and Pakistan among 23 major drug transit and illicit drug producing countries in a Presidential Determination to the US Congress. He also said he looked forward to continued cooperation under the United States-India Drug Policy Framework.
In the directive, made public on Wednesday, Trump said India being on the list was not necessarily a reflection of the government's current counter-drug efforts or coordination with the US. He also urged countries, including China, to do more to address the flow of drugs and precursor chemicals.
"I welcome Prime Minister Modi and the Government of India's efforts to address illicit opium poppy cultivation and bolster supply chain integrity," Trump said. The Presidential Determination said countries are placed on the list, as required by US law, because of a combination of geographic, commercial and economic factors that allow drugs or precursor chemicals to transit or be produced, even if a government has taken robust narcotics control and law enforcement measures.
The other countries identified as major drug transit or major illicit drug producing countries were Afghanistan, The Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Burma, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Laos, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru and Venezuela.
Trump also spoke of what he described as "historic progress" by his administration in tackling drug trafficking and narcoterrorist organisations. He pointed to tighter border security, lower drug seizures and a fall in overdose deaths as signs of that progress. "After four years of open border chaos, seizures of fentanyl and other drugs being smuggled into the United States have been reduced by more than half, and drug overdose deaths have plunged," Trump said. He also claimed that the administration had saved tens of thousands of American lives.
On China, Trump urged stronger action to stop the flow of precursor chemicals used to make fentanyl, methamphetamine and other synthetic drugs. "The PRC continues to be the world's largest producer of many of the precursor chemicals used to illicitly produce fentanyl, methamphetamine, and other deadly synthetic drugs," he said, referring to China by its official name, the People's Republic of China. Trump said he had raised the issue directly with Chinese President Xi Jinping and noted that Beijing had introduced licensing requirements last year for companies exporting designated precursor chemicals to North America.
Overall, Trump used the determination to welcome Modi's anti-drug efforts, place India on the US list of 23 such countries under legal requirements, and press other countries, including China, to step up action against illicit drugs and precursor chemicals.
