A bombshell congressional report released Friday by House Republicans on the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party has raised alarms over U.S.-funded research allegedly bolstering China’s military capabilities. The investigation revealed that over a two-year period, the Pentagon supported hundreds of projects in collaboration with Chinese universities and institutes linked to Beijing’s defense industry, including entities blacklisted by the U.S. government for their ties to the Chinese military.
The 80-page report argues that these partnerships, funded by over $2.5 billion in Pentagon grants, have allowed China to exploit American research for military advancements in fields like hypersonic technology, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and next-generation propulsion. “American taxpayer dollars should be used to defend the nation—not strengthen its foremost strategic competitor,” the report stated, warning that unchecked collaborations could erode U.S. technological dominance and jeopardize national security.
The investigation identified 1,400 research papers published between June 2023 and June 2025, involving Chinese partners and backed by approximately 700 defense grants. More than half of these collaborations involved organizations tied to China’s defense research, with dozens flagged for security concerns on U.S. blacklists, though current laws do not prohibit such partnerships. A striking example cited in the report involves a Carnegie Science geophysicist who worked on Pentagon-funded research while holding appointments at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Hefei Institute of Physical Sciences, focusing on areas like high-energy materials relevant to nuclear weapons development.
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Carnegie Science defended its compliance with U.S. laws, clarifying that the cited research was unclassified, focused on planetary science, and funded by the National Science Foundation, not the Pentagon. Similarly, projects involving Arizona State University and the University of Texas, partnered with Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Beihang University, explored high-stakes decision-making with applications in electronic warfare, funded by U.S. defense agencies.
The report criticizes the Defense Department’s lax policies, which allow collaborations with blacklisted entities if the research is unclassified. It backs new legislation proposed by Committee Chairman Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Michigan) to ban Pentagon funding for projects involving Chinese entities deemed security risks and for U.S. universities operating joint institutes with Chinese counterparts. The Chinese Embassy dismissed the report as “groundless,” arguing that U.S.-China scientific cooperation is mutually beneficial.
Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent emphasized the report’s findings as a wake-up call for greater transparency in university ties with foreign entities, advocating a “whole-of-government approach” to counter potential foreign influence. While investigators clarified they do not aim to halt all U.S.-China academic collaborations, they urged stricter oversight to prevent partnerships that could advance China’s military goals, sparking a heated debate over balancing open science with national security.
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