BY MARKOS KOULANAKIS
Special to McClatchy
It is, ultimately, a chemical. And it’s being used as a weapon in China’s 21st Century Opium War against America.
President Donald Trump’s twelve-day, five-nation Asia tour will focus on North Korean nukes and international trade. In Beijing, however, he plans to address China’s fentanyl production and distribution, an industry that fuels what the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission calls “China’s deadly export to the United States.” Trump holds undeniable moral authority when it comes to substance abuse, having personally seen and felt the effects on his family. Forcing China’s hand on fentanyl is the right thing to do.
Drug abuse is inherently a demand issue, with the underlying problem being America’s insatiable narcotics need. But there is an international supply part to the drug equation that stretches from China’s bottomless fentanyl manufacture to its bulk shipping of the deadly white powder into global markets. If Trump can get China to constrain its cheap supply, he might significantly reduce the problem.
full story at http://www.mcclatchydc.com/opinion/article182139386.html