US and Mexico weighing deal for Mexico to crack down on fentanyl going north while US cracks down on guns going south
The tentative agreement is the result of months of tense discussions between top Biden administration officials and the Mexican government, said sources.
In this Friday, June 1, 2018, photo, small vials of fentanyl are shown in the inpatient pharmacy at the University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City. Amid the nation's opioid epidemic, hospitals are struggling to get widely used injected pain medicines because of ongoing supply shortages. The shortages affect just about every corner of the hospital, from the operating room and emergency department. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) (Rick Bowmer, Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
The U.S. is preparing to announce a deal with Mexico to counter fentanyl coming across the southern border, with Mexico cracking down on labs and smuggling while the U.S. does more to stop the flow of U.S. guns into Mexico, two sources familiar with the strategy told NBC News.
Mexican military and police, with the help of U.S. law enforcement, will focus on tracking raw materials for fentanyl being shipped to Mexico, finding and shutting down labs that make the deadly synthetic opioid and going after key players in the illicit fentanyl trade, the sources said.
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In return, the Biden administration has agreed to more tightly control and track firearms crossing from the U.S. into Mexico.
