The United States has sanctioned two Chinese entities and five nationals over drug trafficking.
U.S. Secretary of State, Mr Michael Pompeo, announced the action in a statement on Friday.
Pompeo identified the companies as Wuhan Livika Technology Co. Ltd., and Global United Biotechnology Inc.
The affected individuals are Songyan, Zhan Longbao, Cheng Guifeng, Zheng Guangfu and Hu Qi., according to him.
He linked them to the Zheng Drug Trafficking Organisation (DTO), run by Chinese synthetic opioid traffickers, Fujing Zheng and Yan Xiaobing.
Pompeii said Zheng and DTO were identified as “significant foreign narcotics traffickers” by the U.S. Department of Treasury in 2019.
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According to him, the department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) also designated Guanghua Zheng for his support to the DTO’s drug trafficking activities.
He added that Qinsheng Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., a Chinese entity, was also blacklisted for being owned or controlled by Fujing Zheng.
Xiaobing Yan, another Chinese national, was equally designated as a “significant foreign narcotics trafficker,” he said.
The Secretary of State said the sanctions were in continuation of efforts by the U.S. government to crack down on fentanyl and other synthetic opioids trafficked from China.
Those substances, according to him, have claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans.(NAN)