Kurt M. Campbell Deputy Secretary of State | Official Website
U.S. Department of State Counselor Tom Sullivan and White House Homeland Security Advisor Liz Sherwood-Randall led a virtual meeting with leaders from 12 countries involved in the Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats. The coalition aims to mobilize international efforts against the synthetic drug crisis, with participating countries including Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Dominican Republic, France, Italy, Mexico, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.
This meeting was a follow-up to President Biden’s Leaders’ Summit at the UN General Assembly in September. During that summit, 11 coalition countries announced new initiatives aimed at disrupting fentanyl supply chains and enhancing public health interventions.
The United States acknowledged announcements from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and France regarding their new initiatives. Argentina is working on establishing a regional center for sharing information and best practices to combat synthetic drug trafficking. Brazil is focusing on expanding Early Warning Systems to identify emerging synthetic drug threats. Colombia expressed readiness to collaborate with coalition partners in analyzing seized illicit-synthetic drugs and their precursors. France intends to explore training French-speaking public health professionals globally in substance-use prevention and treatment.
Counselor Sullivan and Advisor Sherwood-Randall praised these collaborative efforts targeting the supply chain of fentanyl and other synthetic drugs while emphasizing detection of emerging threats and prevention through public health measures. They reiterated the U.S. government's priority in countering synthetic drug threats as a commitment to protecting its citizens.
