President Trump said illicit drugs such as fentanyl are being smuggled into the United States at “unacceptable levels” and that import taxes would force other countries to crack down on the trafficking.

In exchange for delaying tariffs, Trump had insisted that Mexico crack down on cartels, illegal migration and fentanyl production.

In a rare bipartisan move, two senators have introduced legislation in the latest attempt to fight the flow of fentanyl and its precursors into the U.S. from China, Mexico and through other borders.

Spokane Police Chief Kevin Hall told the U.S. Senate on Wednesday that the economic toll of fentanyl is staggering as China smuggles precursors into Mexico for the cartels to ship north. His testimony followed a news release Tuesday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,

President Donald Trump plans to impose tariffs on Canada and Mexico starting Tuesday, in addition to doubling the 10% universal tariff charged on imports from China. In a Truth Social post Thursday, Trump said illicit drugs such as fentanyl are being smuggled into the United States at “unacceptable levels" and that import taxes would force other countries to crack down on the trafficking.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said his proposed 25% tariffs on Mexican and Canadian goods will take effect on Tuesday, along with an extra 10% duty on Chinese imports because deadly drugs are still pouring into the U.

Following a high-level meeting at the White House, the Trump administration has decided to pause all future deliveries of U.S. military assistance to Ukraine, according to two U.S. officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive policy deliberations.

Senior Trump trade and manufacturing advisor Peter Navarro explains the president's tariffs on Mexico and Canada while doubling China's surcharge on 'Varney & Co.'

Trump at first imposed 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican exports to the U.S., then exempted the duties on Mexican- and Canadian-made vehicles being transported into the U.S. and later by week’s end delayed the tariffs on almost all items for four weeks until April 2.

Trump has cast Canada as a major importer of the synthetic opioid to the US. But the seizures at the northern border represent a tiny portion of the trafficking trade.