Has the Hunt for Chinese Spies Become a Witch Hunt? University scientists work in ‘an atmosphere of fear.’

August 14, 2021

By Karin Fischer, The Chronicle of Higher Education, August 11, 2021

When the Biden administration took office, many in higher education expected a shift in Washington’s attitude toward academic collaboration with China.

President Donald J. Trump, after all, is alleged to have called all Chinese students spies. His secretary of state suggested that colleges were compromised because they were “hooked on Chinese Communist Party cash.” The Trump administration restricted Chinese-student visas, froze exchange programs, and policed the money colleges were getting from China.

President Biden, by contrast, has toned down the rhetoric, and his administration has called for a “renewed U.S. commitment” to international education.

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