A new American intelligence report states that India has emerged as a growing player in illegal Phantanile trade, a designation that is likely to increase an alarm in New Delhi, as President Donald Trump has incited tariffs on countries that they have accused of not enough to prevent fatal medicine from flowing in the United States.
Fentanyl, which is a powerful synthetic opioid that can be 100 times more powerful than morphine, is the most common drug involved in overdose deaths in the US. CNN,
This has promoted an opioid crisis which has become a high priority issue for the Trump administration.
China has been the largest source of both legal supply of drugs for many years. The drug is prescribed for severe pain relief and illegal supply of preceding chemicals that are usually processed in laboratories in Mexico, before the final product is smuggled to the US border.
However, according to the 2025 Annual Danger Evaluation (ATA) report published by the office of Director of National Intelligence this month, India’s role in illegal trade is becoming more prominent.
The report stated, “Nonstate groups are often directly and indirectly, by state actors, such as the drug smugglers by China and India, as a forearm and sources of equipment,” the report states.
“China remains the primary source of the illegal phenneyl precursor chemistry and the pill pressure equipment, after which India said.”
India was designated as other countries other than China by last year’s ATA report, where Mexican Cartel was sourcing the forearm for a “low extent”.
India is a global leader in generic drug manufacturing, supplying an important part of the world’s vaccines and drugs.
