By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq. ) (IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq. ) (NEA), section 604 of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended (19 U.S.C. 2483), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code,
I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, find that the sustained influx of synthetic opioids has profound consequences on our Nation, including by killing approximately two hundred Americans per day, putting a severe strain on our healthcare system, ravaging our communities, and destroying our families. Synthetic opioid overdose is the leading cause of death for people aged 18 to 45 in the United States.
During my first term, I took steps to end the direct flow of fentanyl and other synthetic opioids from the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the United States. Since then, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which exerts ultimate control over the government and enterprises of the PRC, has subsidized and otherwise incentivized PRC chemical companies to export fentanyl and related precursor chemicals that are used to produce synthetic opioids sold illicitly in the United States.
Furthermore, the PRC provides support to and safe haven for PRC-origin transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) that launder the revenues from the production, shipment, and sale of illicit synthetic opioids. These PRC-origin TCOs coordinate and communicate using PRC social media software applications in the conduct of their business.
Many PRC-based chemical companies also go to great lengths to evade law enforcement and hide illicit substances in the flow of legitimate commerce. Some of the techniques employed by these PRC-based companies to conceal the true contents of the parcels and the identity of the distributors include the use of re-shippers in the United States, false invoices, fraudulent postage, and deceptive packaging. While more than 500,000 pounds of drugs have been seized at the southern border each of the last 3 fiscal years, in addition, more than 42,000 pounds of drugs have been seized at the northern border each year on average over the last 3 years. Illicit drugs kill tens of thousands of Americans each year, including 75,000 deaths per year attributed to fentanyl alone.
The influx of these drugs to our Nation threatens the fabric of our society. The PRC plays a central role in this challenge, not merely by failing to stem the ultimate source of many illicit drugs distributed in the United States, but by actively sustaining and expanding the business of poisoning our citizens.
The flow of contraband drugs like fentanyl to the United States through illicit distribution networks has created a national emergency, including a public health crisis in the United States, as outlined in the Presidential Memorandum of January 20, 2025 (America First Trade Policy), Proclamation 10886 of January 20, 2025 (Declaring a National Emergency at the Southern Border of the United States), and Executive Order 14157 of January 20, 2025 (Designating Cartels and Other Organizations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists).
Despite multiple attempts to resolve this crisis at its root source through bilateral dialogue, PRC officials have failed to follow through with the decisive actions needed to stem the flow of precursor chemicals to known criminal cartels and shut down the money laundering TCOs. The PRC implements the most sophisticated domestic surveillance network coupled with the most comprehensive domestic law enforcement apparatus in the world. The PRC also routinely exerts extraterritorial reach across the globe to threaten, harass, and suppress what it views as political dissent. As such, the CCP does not lack the capacity to severely blunt the global illicit opioid epidemic; it simply is unwilling to do so.
Immediate action is required to address the national emergency I declared and to finally end this emergency, including the public health crisis caused by opioid use and addiction, which will not happen until the full compliance and cooperation of the PRC government is assured.
I hereby determine and order: