FBI Director Kash Patel says the United States has established limited law enforcement partnerships with China and Russia to combat transnational crimes such as fentanyl trafficking, cyber fraud and child sexual exploitation, despite longstanding tensions with both countries.
The cooperation has included personnel exchanges, intelligence sharing and joint investigations focused on specific criminal cases. FBI agents have travelled to China, while Chinese law enforcement officials have visited the United States under newly created working groups targeting cybercrime, violent crimes against children, counternarcotics and fugitive investigations.
Patel said the partnerships are carefully limited and do not extend to broader intelligence or national security matters. He described them as practical efforts aimed at securing results for the United States while maintaining safeguards against espionage.
Among the operations cited was Operation Sand Dollar, carried out with Chinese authorities and Dubai police, which resulted in about 300 arrests, the seizure of $300 million, and the rescue of thousands of trafficking victims from cyber scam centres.
The cooperation has sparked concern among former FBI officials and security experts, who argue that closer engagement with China and Russia could expose sensitive U.S. information to governments widely viewed as strategic adversaries. Patel dismissed those concerns, saying strict counterintelligence measures are in place whenever foreign officials interact with the FBI.
He stressed that the United States’ traditional intelligence alliances, including the Five Eyes partnership, remain its highest priority and said the new arrangements are designed solely to address shared criminal threats.
The FBI also credited recent cooperation with Chinese authorities for operations targeting companies linked to fentanyl precursor chemicals, leading to multiple arrests, factory closures and chemical seizures intended to prevent illicit drugs from reaching the United States.
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