VOA常速-Addressing the Drug Epidemic

往期听力

The United States is in the midst of its most severe drug epidemic 流行传播;泛滥 since the 1980s. Today, more people are dying from drug overdoses 药物过量 than from gun homicides 杀人 and motor vehicles combined, said President Donald Trump:

“Last year, we lost at least 64,000 Americans to overdoses. That’s 175 lost American lives per day. That’s seven lost lives per hour in our country. Drug overdoses are now the leading cause of unintentional death in the United States by far.”

“Ending the epidemic will require mobilization of government, local communities, and private organizations. It will require the resolve of our entire country,” said President Trump.

The U.S. Department of State plays a key role in this effort. That’s because the crisis is fueled by heroin 海洛因 and synthetic 合成的  opioids 类鸦片物 that were produced overseas, while transnational criminal organizations move this deadly product into the United States. For these reasons, the national strategy to respond to this crisis must include an international component, said Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, Jim Walsh.

Already, we are seeing some successes. At the request of the United States, the United Nations recently placed two chemicals used to make the drug fentanyl 芬太尼 on an international list of controlled substances.

Since 2015, due in part to U.S. requests, China has taken unprecedented action, controlling 138 narcotic 麻醉致幻的;毒品  substances.

The State Department is also using foreign assistance to strengthen Mexico’s capacity to interdict 封锁;禁令 illegal drugs. This helps improve security along our shared border against the cross-border distribution of heroin and synthetic drugs.

These efforts, along with a slew of new tools developed by the International Narcotics And Law Enforcement Bureau, which address addiction and demand for drugs, will also help address the opioid crisis domestically, said Deputy Assistant Secretary Walsh:

“With over 64,000 Americans dead from overdoses in 2016, with drug traffickers taking advantage of new ways to move and sell their product, including through the dark web, and rogue 流氓,恶棍;破坏性的,不寻常的 chemists developing assiduous 刻苦勤奋的 new synthetic drugs at an alarming rate, we must constantly be adapting our approach in responding to new and deadly realities.”

“This challenge is a dire 严峻严重的;糟糕的 one,” said Deputy Assistant Secretary Walsh, “and it will continue to be a top priority 优先事项 for the department.”

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