WASHINGTON ¨C China is directly subsidizing production of illicit fentanyl precursors for sale abroad and fueling the U.S. opioid crisis, a U.S. congressional committee said on Tuesday, releasing findings from an investigation it said unveiled Beijing¡¯s incentives for the deadly chemicals.
China continues to provide subsidies in the form of value-added tax rebates to its companies that manufacture fentanyl analogues, precursors and other synthetic narcotics, so long as they sell them outside of China, the House of Representatives¡¯ select committee on China said in a report.
¡°The PRC (People¡¯s Republic of China) scheduled all fentanyl analogues as controlled substances in 2019, meaning that it currently subsidizes the export of drugs that are illegal under both U.S. and PRC law,¡± the report said, adding that some of the substances ¡°have no known legal use worldwide.¡±
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