Guwahati: President Donald Trump has identified 23 countries, including China, Afghanistan, India, and Pakistan, as major drug transit or illicit drug-producing nations, citing their role in manufacturing and trafficking drugs and precursor chemicals that threaten U.S. security.
The designation was submitted to Congress on Monday (September 15, 2025) in a “Presidential Determination.”
The full list of countries includes Afghanistan, The Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Burma, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Laos, Mexico, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela.
The U.S. State Department clarified that inclusion on the list does not necessarily reflect a country’s counterdrug efforts or cooperation with the United States.
The assessment considers geographic, commercial, and economic factors that enable the production or transit of drugs and precursor chemicals.
Five countries—Afghanistan, Bolivia, Burma, Colombia, and Venezuela—were specifically noted as having “failed demonstrably to make substantial efforts” to combat narcotics production and trafficking over the past 12 months.
President Trump highlighted China as the “world’s largest source” of precursor chemicals used in illicit fentanyl production, and noted its role in supplying other synthetic narcotics, including nitazenes and methamphetamine. He called on Chinese authorities to take stronger action against chemical flows and prosecute those involved.
Regarding Afghanistan, Trump said that despite the Taliban’s announced ban on illegal drugs, drug stockpiles and ongoing production, including methamphetamine, continue to supply international markets. He added that revenue from the drug trade funds transnational criminal groups and supports terrorist activities, noting that some Taliban members continue to profit from these operations.
The President emphasized that trafficking of fentanyl and other deadly drugs into the U.S. by organized crime networks has created a national emergency, contributing to a public health crisis that remains the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18 to 44.