VIENNA – On February 18, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas met with People’s Republic of China (PRC) State Councilor and Minister of Public Security Wang Xiaohong in Vienna, Austria to advance cooperation with the PRC in the fight against the scourge of fentanyl, its precursor chemicals, and associated equipment.
This meeting builds upon the commitments made at the Woodside Summit between President Biden and President Xi last November, the January 10 virtual meeting between Secretary Mayorkas and State Councilor Wang, and the January 30 inaugural meeting of the U.S.-PRC Counternarcotics Working Group.
The two sides had a candid and constructive discussion on the steps needed to combat the spread of precursor chemicals and the transnational criminal organizations that profit off the production, distribution, and sale of illicit synthetic drugs. The two sides also made commitments with respect to continued law enforcement cooperation, technical bilateral exchanges between scientists and other experts, scheduling of precursor chemicals, and furthering multilateral cooperation.
Secretary Mayorkas and State Councilor Wang discussed areas of concern within the bilateral relationship and committed to ongoing discussion on those and other issues.
The two sides also discussed expanding their law enforcement cooperation in the fight to protect children from online child sexual exploitation and abuse. This heinous crime is global in scope and predators do not draw geographic boundaries that limit the reach of this cruelty.
The Secretary reiterated that the United States will stand up for our interests and values and those of our allies and partners.
Secretary Mayorkas was joined in the meeting by senior officials from the Department of Homeland Security, Department of State, Department of Justice, Department of the Treasury, National Security Council, Office of National Drug Control Policy, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
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