thank you very much um colleagues on behalf of
President Biden welcome welcome to the launch of the Soviet coalition
we are grateful to the senior government officials from more than 80 countries
as well as leaders from over a dozen Regional organizations for joining us
uh we feel this acutely in the United States synthetic drugs are the number one killer of
Americans aged 18 to 49 and it's almost worth pausing on that fact the number one killer of
Americans aged 18 to 49 synthetic drugs notably fentanyl nearly 110 000 Americans died last year
of a drug overdose two-thirds of those deaths involved synthetic opioids uh for the individuals
the families the communities affected the pain caused by these deaths and by the millions who
suffer with substance use is immeasurable it's also inflicting a massive economic toll uh nearly
1.5 trillion dollars in the United States in 2020 alone according to our report by our Congress
uh our Public Health System our Criminal Justice System all bearing the costs that's why President
Biden has made it a top priority for us to tackle two of the critical drivers of this
epidemic in the United States untreated addiction and drug trafficking in 2022 our Administration
released a National Drug control strategy that for the first time in the United States Embraces
harm reduction efforts that meet people where they are and engages them in care and services
uh America is far from alone in facing this challenge according to the United Nations
more than 34 million people around the world use methamphetamines or other synthetic stimulants
annually and every region is experiencing an alarming rise in other synthetic drugs
in Africa Africa it's Tramadol in the Middle East fake captagon pills in Asia Academy
one of the main reasons we wanted to come together today is because we believe the
United States is a canary in the coal mine when it comes to Fentanyl an exceptionally addictive
and deadly synthetic drug having saturated the United States Market transnational criminal
Enterprises are turning elsewhere to expand their profits if we don't act together with Fierce
urgency more communities around the world will barely catastrophic costs that are already
affecting so many American cities so many American towns the criminal organizations that traffic
synthetic drugs are extremely Adept at exploiting weak links in our interconnected global system
one government aggressively restricts the precursor chemical traffickers simply buy it
elsewhere when one country closes off a transit route traffickers quickly shift to another
this is the definition of a problem that no country can solve alone that's why we're creating
This Global coalition we're focused on three key areas first preventing the illicit manufacture
and trafficking of synthetic drugs second detecting emerging threats and patterns of use
and third advancing Public Health interventions and services to prevent and reduce drug use to
save lives to support recovery for people who use drugs now of course we're not starting from
scratch for years governments Regional and international organizations health
workers and communities I mean coming up with innovative solutions on each of these priorities
countries in the Western Hemisphere are working with the organization of American states to
develop and Implement early Warning Systems to detect emerging synthetic drug use take home uh
uh naloxone kits pioneered by countries in Europe have been adopted by countries in Central Asia and
other regions the international narcotics control board is promoting intelligence sharing on the
trafficking of precursors to help governments cooperate on interdictions and on prosecutions
this Coalition this Coalition is intended to build on these and other important efforts not take
their place including efforts in the United States which are among those shared Lessons Learned
I'll give just one example in April we hosted the first ever City Summit of the Americas in
Denver Colorado we brought together more than 250 Mayors from across our hemisphere along
with Governors tribal and Indigenous officials leaders from civil society and the private sector
one of the sessions that I attended focused on local efforts to combat the fentanyl the city
of Denver's crime lab shared how it tracks the emergence of new synthetic drugs and overdoses
Mayors from Canada from Ecuador and Mexico spoke to their strategies to tackle the rise
in synthetic drug use this is precisely the kind of collaboration that will Foster through this
Global coalition while championing other voluntary best practices like improved information sharing
between governments in the private sector better labeling and know your customer protocols to help
prevent the diversion of precursors into illicit use today in addition to this ministerial meeting
we'll convene three expert panels the panel discussions will help Define the goals of
distinct work working groups one for each of the coalition's major lines of effort which will
carry our collaborative efforts forward over the coming months then in September we plan to host an
in-person meeting of this Coalition on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly high level
week where the working groups will report on their progress and help us chart A Way Forward
at every step our Focus will be on developing practical policies diminishing the public
health and public security threats posed by synthetic drugs improving the lives of our people
it's not enough to work with governments and international organizations we need to partner
with the private sector including chemical manufacturer shipping companies social media
platforms because this illicit trade is built on the pillars of legitimate Global Commerce
most synthetic drugs are produced from chemicals that are used legally in making Pharmaceuticals
Cosmetics household products traffickers advertise synthetic drugs on social media
they use online apps to communicate with prospective buyers and collect payments
we also need to partner with Hospitals and Clinics emergency departments mental
health professionals and other public health stakeholders who are saving lives every single
day are providing treatment and Recovery support efforts and we need Civil Society at the table
including the community-based organizations that are on the front lines of this effort
I mentioned a few minutes ago my meeting with City officials from the Americas who
are developing these Innovative responses to threats from synthetic drugs one of them who
really stayed with me was Shawna darling she's a public health official from Denver uh she and
her team drive a bright purple van that I got a chance to see a clinic on Wheels among the city's
underdeveloped neighborhoods bringing service Services directly to vulnerable communities
they distribute fentanyl test strips and actually naloxone they connect individuals
with treatment and recovery programs they share information about dangerous new synthetic drugs
Shauna explained to me that one of the reasons she's been able to build trust
with many of these vulnerable people is because she walked in their shoes she
herself struggled with addiction for 13 years she spent time in and out of jail
and she told me and I quote I've learned what it feels like to be defeated and desperate but I was
able to get support and care that I needed and now I'm able to offer that with others
when we talk about the hundreds of thousands of lives this epidemic takes every year and
the millions of families is ravaging it's easy to lose sight of the human beings behind the numbers
so let's remember that while this Coalition is about protecting our citizen security
their health their prosperity it's also about saving people's lives saving their futures
people who could be our neighbors our friends
our loved ones individuals who like Shauna have so much to contribute to their communities I can't
think of a more important or urgent undertaking for us and I can't thank you enough for joining
this session joining this Coalition and for the work that we'll do together thanks everyone