'War on drugs demands China-U.S. cooperation' - experts say

‘War on drugs demands China-U.S. cooperation’ – experts say

Jun 13, 2026 News

(Kaieteur News) – As synthetic drugs continue to pose a growing threat to public health worldwide, experts from China and the United States are urging both countries to strengthen cooperation in the fight against drug abuse and trafficking.

Featured in CGTN’s documentary War On Fentanyl: Record of China-U.S. Cooperation, four specialists from the fields of medicine, addiction research and law enforcement delivered a common message: the drug crisis is a global challenge that no nation can solve alone.

The global drug problem cannot be solved by any single country acting alone. According to Zhou Wenhua, a researcher at the Affiliated Kangning Hospital of Ningbo University and vice president of the Chinese Association of Drug Abuse Prevention & Treatment, the scale and complexity of drug abuse today make international cooperation indispensable.

'War on drugs demands China-U.S. cooperation' - experts say

Members of the panel

Zhou noted that nearly 300 million people worldwide abuse psychoactive substances, while scientific understanding of addiction remains limited. In his view, deeper cooperation among countries would not only strengthen efforts to address drug abuse but also advance research into psychoactive substances and the human brain itself.

By sharing knowledge and resources, the international community can develop more effective approaches to prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation.

Experts also believe that China and the United States possess complementary strengths that could contribute significantly to global drug governance.

Shen Haowei, professor at the Faculty of Medicine of Ningbo University and head of its Professional Master’s Program in Pharmacy, pointed out that China has established an evidence-based system for evaluating drug-related harms. The United States, meanwhile, has accumulated extensive epidemiological data, as well as valuable experience in street-level monitoring and law-enforcement practice.

According to Shen, closer cooperation between the two countries could help make their respective drug-control legislation more scientific and evidence-based. More importantly, such collaboration could contribute to the development of internationally recognized standards for regulating emerging psychoactive substances, providing a stronger framework for global drug control.

While political and diplomatic uncertainties often complicate bilateral relations, some experts argue that these challenges should not prevent cooperation on issues that affect public welfare.

Liu Yu, executive director and professor at the Faculty of Medicine of Ningbo University, emphasised that drug-related threats are shared challenges. She argued that countries should be willing to set aside certain destabilising factors and continue working together even when differences remain. In her view, cooperation should not be held hostage to broader geopolitical tensions when common interests are at stake.

This sentiment is echoed by experts in the United States.

David, a former diversion investigator with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), stressed that drugs do not discriminate based on politics, ideology, or national affiliation. The harm they cause extends across borders and affects communities regardless of political differences.

For that reason, he argued, cooperation between China and the United States should be viewed as more than a matter of diplomacy. At its core, it is a shared effort to protect future generations from the devastating consequences of drug abuse.

Although they come from different countries and professional backgrounds, the four experts deliver a common message: drugs are a common enemy. Scientific research, legislative innovation, public health measures, and law-enforcement cooperation all require international collaboration. In the fight against drug abuse and trafficking, they believe China and the United States have an opportunity—and a responsibility—to work together for the benefit of future generations.

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China-U.S. cooperation, drug abuse, public health worldwide, synthetic drugs, War on drugs

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