On November 21, 2025, the China-US Counter-Narcotics Cooperation and Comprehensive Dialogue opened in Shanghai. Shen Xin, Vice President of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC); and Duan Yong, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Shanghai University Committee, attended the opening ceremony and delivered remarks. Marcel Arsenault, Founder of the Arsenault Family Foundation, delivered a video remarks.
In his remarks, Vice President Shen Xin noted that the meeting between the Chinese and U.S. presidents had charted a course for the development of bilateral relations. At this pivotal moment, the establishment of this unofficial and constructive dialogue platform aims to provide an opportunity for officials, scholars, and practitioners to engage in candid discussions, share experiences, build consensus, and explore potential pathways forward. Vice President Shen Xin expressed the hope that through this dialogue, both sides would enhance mutual understanding, narrow perception gaps, focus on cooperation, jointly explore practical and feasible ways to advance, and build mutual trust to lay a solid foundation for deeper and broader cooperation in the future.
This dialogue is co-hosted by the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the Arsenault Family Foundation (USA) Beijing Representative Office, and organized by the International Center for Drug Policy Studies, Shanghai University. The theme of the dialogue is "Emerging Synthetic Opioid Threats: From Fentanyl to Nitazenes and Beyond". Over the course of the two-day dialogue, multidisciplinary experts and officials from both China and the United States will share their viewpoints and perspectives on the current opioid abuse crisis, discuss new drug threats facing two countries, and strengthen communication and coordination between relevant personnel from two countries in addressing the rapidly evolving trends and challenges of drug abuse.
