A congressional report released Wednesday claims China is using partnerships with U.S. Department of Energy-funded researchers to give its military access to sensitive nuclear technology and other innovations with economic and national security applications.
Findings of the Report
Investigators from the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party and the House Committee on Education and the Workforce identified more than 4,300 academic papers published between June 2023 and June of this year that involved collaborations between DOE-funded scientists and Chinese researchers. About half of the papers involved Chinese researchers affiliated with China’s military or industrial base. The report also noted that federal funds supported collaborations with state-owned laboratories and universities that work directly for China’s military, including some listed in a Pentagon database of Chinese military companies with operations in the U.S. In addition, the investigation highlighted partnerships between U.S. researchers and groups blamed for cyberattacks and human rights abuses in China.
China’s Response
The Chinese Embassy in Washington said the select committee “has long smeared and attacked China for political purposes and has no credibility to speak of.” Embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu added, “A handful of U.S. politicians are overstretching the concept of national security to obstruct normal scientific research exchanges, a move that wins no public support and is bound to fail.”
DOE’s Role and Statement
The Energy Department routinely funds advanced research into nuclear energy and the development and disposal of nuclear weaponry, along with a long list of other high-tech fields such as quantum computing, materials science, and physics. It doles out hundreds of millions of dollars each year for research and oversees 17 national laboratories that have led the development in many technologies. In response to the report, the department said it will review the findings “to better assess, understand, and validate its assertions.” It also stated that it “takes seriously its responsibility to steward federal funds and safeguard critical research capabilities” and will “continue rigorous due diligence and oversight of awards” to ensure its program’s integrity and security.
Congressional Context
The report followed a number of congressional investigations into federally funded research involving Chinese scientists. Last year, a report released by Republicans found that partnerships between U.S. and Chinese universities over the past decade had allowed hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding to help Beijing develop critical technology that could help strengthen its military. Another investigation this year revealed that the Pentagon, in a recent two-year period, funded hundreds of projects in collaboration with Chinese entities linked to China’s defense industry.
Recommendations and Policy Gaps
The report’s authors noted that the Energy Department has failed for decades to take steps to ensure the research it funds doesn’t benefit China. They made several recommendations to tighten the rules, including a new standardized approach to assessing the national security risks of research and requirements that the department share information about research ties with China with other U.S. government agencies to make it easier to spot problems. “These longstanding policy failures and inaction have left taxpayer-funded research vulnerable to exploitation by China’s defense research and industrial base and state-directed technology transfer activities,” the authors concluded.
Moolenaar’s Legislative Effort
Rep. John Moolenaar, a Michigan Republican who chairs the select committee, said in a statement that the “investigation reveals a deeply alarming problem: The Department of Energy failed to ensure the security of its research and it put American taxpayers on the hook for funding the military rise of our nation’s foremost adversary.” This year, Moolenaar introduced legislation aimed at preventing research funding in science and technology and defense from going to collaborations or partnerships with “foreign adversary-controlled” entities that pose a national security risk. The legislation cleared the House but failed to advance to become part of the annual sweeping defense policy bill. It was met with strong opposition from scientists and researchers, who argued that the measures were too broad and could chill collaboration and undermine America’s competitive edge in science and technology.
Academic Community’s Response
In an October letter, a group of more than 750 faculty members and senior staffers from American universities told congressional leaders overseeing the armed services that the U.S. is in a global competition for talent. They called for “very careful and targeted measures for risk management” to address security concerns, emphasizing the need to balance national security with the benefits of open scientific collaboration.
Key Takeaways
- The report documents over 4,300 U.S. DOE-funded papers linked to Chinese researchers, half of which involve military affiliates.
- Chinese state-owned labs and universities that work directly for China’s military received federal funding through these collaborations.
- The Energy Department acknowledges the findings and pledges to review and strengthen oversight of its research awards.
The congressional findings underscore a growing concern that U.S. federally funded research may be inadvertently advancing China’s military capabilities. While the Energy Department plans to tighten oversight, lawmakers and the academic community continue to debate the best way to protect national security without stifling scientific progress.
