Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States February 16, 2026
Senior officials from the United States and the People’s Republic of China met in Colorado Springs February 10 – 12, 2026, for the eleventh meeting of the Bilateral Drug Intelligence Working Group, continuing a channel for sustained technical engagement on illicit synthetic drugs, including fentanyl.
Discussions focused on practical coordination to disrupt the systems that enable illicit synthetic drug production and trafficking, including risks of diversion in chemical supply chains and the financial methods used to move and conceal criminal proceeds.
“No single country can effectively address the synthetic drug crisis on its own,” said Daniel Baldwin, Director of the Joint Action on Drug Elimination (JADE) initiative. “Sustained engagement between the United States and China is essential to reducing the flow of precursor chemicals, limiting opportunities for criminal exploitation, and ultimately, saving lives. This meeting reflects the type of practical engagement that can lay the groundwork for cooperation that makes a difference, and it is an effort I am honored to support through my work at PAX sapiens.”
The JADE initiative supports law enforcement and regulatory collaboration with a focus on the chemical and financial systems that underpin synthetic drug markets. JADE is a program of PAX sapiens, a Colorado-based foundation with offices in Washington DC, Vienna, and Beijing.
For over a decade, the Bilateral Drug Intelligence Working Group has provided a mechanism for sustained technical exchange. Participants reaffirmed the importance of continued information exchange and committed to maintaining momentum through future engagement focused on reducing the flow of fentanyl and precursor chemicals.
Media Contact
Wendy Lu Maxwell-Barton, Communications Program Manager,
PAX sapiens
press@paxsapiens.org,
+1 303 883 1121
https://paxsapiens.org
About PAX sapiens
PAX sapiens’ mission is to prevent predictable global catastrophes through the creation of new systems of collective coordination that build a more peaceful world. Learn more: https://paxsapiens.org
