(Mexico City) Mexico is the “champion” of synthetic drugs, including fentanyl which kills thousands in the United States, a senior Mexican security official admitted Tuesday during a bilateral meeting.
The admission comes as American officials present at this meeting in Mexico renewed their demand for strengthening in the fight against powerful Mexican cartels.
“Mexico has been the champion in the production of methamphetamines, and now fentanyl,” acknowledged the head of the Mexican Criminal Investigation Agency, Felipe de Jesus Gallo.
This synthetic drug trafficking is “a source of greater wealth and power” for the cartels, he conceded.
According to the American anti-drug agency (DEA), Mexican cartels transform chemical precursors imported from China to export fentanyl to the North American market responsible for tens of thousands of overdoses.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has promised to work with the United States to tackle the roots of the problem, although downplaying the scale of production in Mexico.
“We are in the midst of a global illegal synthetic drug crisis,” said Chris Landberg, deputy assistant secretary at the Bureau of International Narcotics (INL).
The United States is working hard to reduce demand for banned narcotics, he told his Mexican counterparts.
“But the United States is not the only country in danger and we need additional support to combat the global supply of banned drugs,” he added, saying he recognizes “that criminal organizations adapt quickly and that we need a more flexible and comprehensive approach.”