China's cooperation with the U.S. request regarding fentanyl and its decision not to avoid the high tariffs imposed by the U.S. (especially the 'Section 301 tariffs') are intertwined with several political and strategic backgrounds. In summary, they are as follows:

The U.S. 'fentanyl' demand is a low-cost card for China

  • Fentanyl is synthesized from precursors made in China and flows into the U.S. through Mexican cartels.

  • From China's perspective, cracking down on fentanyl precursor exports does not have a significant economic impact.

  • Rather, it can take a moral high ground position by claiming that it is helping to address the drug problem that is damaging American society.

  • While pretending to cooperate with the U.S., it can also maintain a loose crackdown. This way, it gains diplomatic benefits through formal cooperation.

Tariffs are a matter of both face and economy

  • The Section 301 tariffs introduced during the Trump era were an attack on China's structural trade policies and affected national dignity and the entire industry.

  • If China had wanted tariff relief in exchange for fentanyl cooperation, the U.S. could have framed it as "China has surrendered".

  • The Chinese Communist Party is very wary of such surrender imagery. Especially since it could provoke domestic nationalist sentiment, it tends to avoid using it as a diplomatic card.

Maintaining control takes precedence over strategic deals

  • China can use the fentanyl issue as a diplomatic card, but it continues to signal that tariffs are absolutely not a condition for negotiation.

  • In other words, it emphasizes a self-determined attitude that "we cooperate based on our own judgment, not because we follow your demands".

  • The U.S. is aware of this, so it approaches the fentanyl issue and the tariff issue separately without linking them.

Balancing 'cooperation and containment' in the U.S.-China competitive structure

  • The U.S. sees China as a strategic competitor, but also views it as a partner that needs cooperation on certain issues (climate, drugs, health, etc.).

  • China is aware of this, so it seeks to secure diplomatic justification and leeway through selective cooperation (fentanyl).

Summary

  • Cooperation on fentanyl is a low-cost, high-efficiency diplomatic card, so China responded without burden, but

  • tariffs are a matter of sovereignty and dignity, which is why it believes it cannot concede.