WASHINGTON, DC — FBI Director Kash Patel announced new law enforcement partnerships with China and Russia to combat transnational crime. The initiatives target fentanyl trafficking, cyber fraud, child sexual exploitation, and violent crimes.

The partnerships involve personnel exchanges where Chinese law enforcement officials visit the United States and FBI agents travel to China. FBI and Chinese officers have conducted joint raids and arrests under the partnership arrangement.

"They are both new and dynamic relationships, and we are extremely mindful of their adversarial approach on many matters," Patel said in an interview. He stated that information exchanges are narrow in scope and limited to the four types of transnational crime where intelligence sharing is reciprocal.

In May 2026, the FBI, China's Ministry of Public Security, and Dubai police conducted "Operation Sand Dollar," a raid on a cyber scam center in Dubai. Operation Sand Dollar resulted in 300 arrests, the seizure of $300 million, and the freeing of thousands of trafficked workers.

An internal FBI memo credited the bureau's cooperation with China's Ministry of Public Security in multiple operations against Chinese pharmaceutical companies in 2026. The operations led to the arrests of nine people, the shutdown of two chemical production facilities and three associated websites, and the seizure of fentanyl precursor chemicals likely otherwise destined for the United States.

A suspect inside China accused of serious violent crimes was repatriated to the United States. The current relationship began with Donald Trump's visit to China in May 2025. Donald Trump's visit to China in May 2025 was followed by two trips by Patel to China.

Patel returned from a trip to Beijing in late July 2026. A similar trip by Patel to Russia is tentatively planned for October 2026. During his trip to Asia in July 2026, Patel met with Chinese Minister of Public Security Wang Xiaohong and Vice Minister Xu Datong.

Patel stated there have been months of behind-the-scenes law enforcement collaboration with Russia targeting violent criminal networks. "We've been at this for 15 months," he said. "This stuff doesn't happen overnight."

The partnerships are known internally as "working groups." The cooperation has expanded across four working groups: cyber fraud, violent crimes against children, counternarcotics, and a fugitive task force. Patel has brought officials from China's Ministry of Public Security to multiple FBI facilities in the United States to share intelligence and investigative information.

"Every month, they send their working-level MPS officers here, and the following month we go there," he said. "They are speaking with us daily, which has also never happened before." He added that unlike military and traditional intelligence agencies, the FBI has a unique lane to drive this dynamic change with law enforcement, which is an apolitical mission.

Jeff Crocker, who retired from the FBI in 2024, stated there are enormous risks related to giving Chinese officials access to the American intelligence community, diplomatic personnel, and US government facilities and contractors. Crocker said Chinese and Russian agents would use any access to US facilities as an opportunity to infiltrate them.

he said counterintelligence operations and countermeasures are deployed for any foreign visitor to FBI facilities. Three former FBI employees stated that countermeasures for foreign visitors usually involve electronic and physical surveillance, particularly for people from countries considered the most dangerous US adversaries. "We know exactly who is coming here, and we vet them," he said.

"Five Eyes will always be our most important intelligence relationship. No one is trying to replace that," he said. He noted that they are not going to stop, but if the United States can go and have wins for America, then it must engage.

The announcement marks a significant shift in how the United States engages with adversarial nations on law enforcement issues. By establishing direct channels with China and Russia, the FBI aims to address transnational crimes that cross borders and evade traditional diplomatic solutions. The operational successes cited, such as Operation Sand Dollar and the dismantling of fentanyl precursor networks, provide tangible examples of how these partnerships function in practice.

However, the arrangement raises security concerns among former officials who warn of infiltration risks. The FBI maintains that strict counterintelligence measures and narrow scopes limit exposure while enabling necessary cooperation. The planned trip to Russia in October 2026 suggests the agency intends to deepen these engagements despite the geopolitical tensions. The balance between achieving law enforcement objectives and protecting national security remains a central challenge for the bureau.

Why It Matters

The establishment of working groups with China and Russia marks a shift toward direct law enforcement engagement with adversarial nations to address specific transnational crimes. While officials maintain that intelligence sharing remains narrow and reciprocal, the arrangement introduces personnel exchanges and joint operations previously unseen between these governments. This approach prioritizes tangible outcomes like arrests and drug seizures over traditional diplomatic isolation, even as former agents warn of infiltration risks at US facilities.