US-China Higher Education Links in Crisis: Behind the Curtain of Suspicion

Abstract

Has America’s complex academic relationship with China been a largely positive experience, or has it eroded our national security by enabling Chinese Communist academic espionage and influence operations to take root at US colleges and universities? For almost forty years beginning in 1978,US-China education links were widely considered a clear benefit to both countries. Today, academic relationships have become a focal point of the current crisis in US-China relations. A web of suspicion has come down over Chinese students and scholars in the United States, as well as Chinese scientists and entrepreneurs. Some members of the Trump administration have even talked about cancelling all Chinese student visas. This article focuses on Chinese students and scholars in the United States. It examines the flashpoints of academic espionage and China’s influence operations on American campuses, looks at how American institutions are responding, and closes with recommendations and reflections.