Removing Chinese Lab From Entity List Has Helped Fentanyl Fight, BIS Officials Say

The Biden administration’s recent decision to remove China’s Institute of Forensic Science (IFS) from the Entity List has led the Chinese government to become more helpful, at least initially, in stemming the flow of illegal fentanyl drugs to the U.S., Bureau of Industry and Security officials said.

China has taken law enforcement action against certain suppliers of fentanyl precursor chemicals, causing some of them to stop operations, said Matthew Axelrod, assistant secretary for export enforcement at BIS, who testified on Dec. 12 before the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s Oversight and Accountability Subcommittee. The Chinese government also has resumed anti-fentanyl collaboration with an international law enforcement database, and has committed to reminding its domestic industry about the country's fentanyl-related laws.

Axelrod cautioned that it remains to be seen whether China will meet all of the anti-fentanyl commitments it made in exchange for the de-listing. "They've already taken some" concrete actions, he said. "We'll continue to watch."

He said that IFS could be returned to the Entity List if China doesn't meet all of its anti-fentanyl commitments. "Removal from the Entity List is not a lifetime pass," he said.

Commerce reportedly took the IFS off the list in mid-November to encourage China to stop producing and exporting the precursors (see 2311160003). House Republicans had opposed the move, citing the lab’s role in human rights abuses (see 2308030022).

Thea Rozman Kendler, assistant secretary for export administration at BIS, testified that the Biden administration is trying to strike a balance between defending the U.S. population against a deadly drug and promoting human rights in China. “We have to address all of that at the same time, and sometimes that involves tough decisions,” she said.