Latest news with #XPCC
New Straits Times
26-05-2025
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Harvard's China ties become political liability
HARVARD University's links to China, long an asset to the school, have become a liability as the Trump administration levels accusations that its campus is plagued by Beijing-backed influence operations. Last Thursday, the administration moved to revoke Harvard's ability to enrol foreign students, saying it fostered anti-Semitism and coordinated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Among them were Chinese nationals who made up about a fifth of Harvard's foreign student intake in 2024, said the university. A US judge on Friday temporarily blocked the administration's order after the Cambridge, Massachusetts, university sued. The concerns about Chinese government influence at Harvard are not new. Some lawmakers, many of them Republicans, have expressed worries that China is manipulating Harvard to gain access to advanced technology, to circumvent security laws and to stifle criticism of it in the US. "For too long, Harvard has let the Chinese Communist Party exploit it," said a White House official on Friday, adding that the school had "turned a blind eye to vigilante CCP-directed harassment on-campus". The school has said the revocation was a punishment for Harvard's "perceived viewpoint", which it called a violation of the right to free speech as guaranteed by the First Amendment. Harvard's links to China, which include research partnerships and China-focused academic centres, are longstanding. The ties have yielded major financial gifts, influence in international affairs and global prestige for the school. In a statement, the Chinese embassy in Washington said: "Educational exchanges and cooperation between China and the United States are mutually beneficial and should not be stigmatised." The presence of Chinese students at Harvard and the school's links to the country are not evidence of wrongdoing. But the complexity and overlapping nature of the connections have been opaque enough to attract attention and criticism. The China-related issues cited by the Trump administration echo the work of the Republican-led House of Representatives' Select Committee on China. For example, Harvard provided public health-related training to Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC) officials after 2020. That year, the US imposed sanctions on the Chinese paramilitary organisation for its role in alleged human rights abuses against Uyghurs and other Muslim ethnic groups in Xinjiang. The Homeland Security Department said those engagements with XPCC continued "as recently as 2024". China vehemently denies any accusations of wrongdoing in Xinjiang, but both the Trump and Joe Biden administrations have defined Beijing's policies in the region as "genocide". In another episode that has drawn questions, US business intelligence firm Strategy Risks said Ronnie Chan, who facilitated a US$350 million donation to Harvard in 2014 that led to its school of public health being named after his father, property developer T.H. Chan, was a member of the China-United States Exchange Foundation. The Hong Kong-based organisation, which says its aim is to foster dialogue between the two countries, has been classified as a foreign principal under US law, requiring US lobbyists working for it to disclose that work to the US government. Former Harvard Professor Charles Lieber was scrutinised by a Trump programme started in 2018 called the China Initiative, which was focused on fighting Chinese espionage and intellectual property theft and investigated researchers and universities over whether they disclosed financial ties to Beijing. He was convicted in 2021 of lying about his ties to China in connection with federally funded research. In April, he became a full-time professor at a Chinese university. In April 2024, a Harvard student activist was ejected from an event by a Chinese exchange student — not faculty or security staff — for interrupting a speech by China's Ambassador Xie Feng. Pressure has mounted on Harvard in Trump's second term, with the Education Department asking the university last month to provide records on its foreign funding after it said a review of required reporting on large foreign-source gifts and contracts revealed incomplete and inaccurate disclosures. Yaqiu Wang, a US-based human rights researcher who came to the US from China as a student, said the Trump administration's move to ban foreign students at Harvard was "completely counterproductive". "The concerns over the Chinese government's transnational repression attempts to silence critics are very legitimate, and also espionage concerns are legitimate," Wang said.
AsiaOne
25-05-2025
- Politics
- AsiaOne
Long advantageous, Harvard's China ties become a political liability, World News
WASHINGTON - Harvard University's links to China, long an asset to the school, have become a liability as the Trump administration levels accusations that its campus is plagued by Beijing-backed influence operations. On Thursday (May 22) the administration moved to revoke Harvard's ability to enroll foreign students, saying it fostered antisemitism and coordinated with the Chinese Communist Party. Among them are Chinese nationals who made up about a fifth of Harvard's foreign student intake in 2024, the university said. A US judge on Friday temporarily blocked the administration's order after the Cambridge, Massachusetts, university sued. The concerns about Chinese government influence at Harvard are not new. Some US lawmakers, many of them Republicans, have expressed worries that China is manipulating Harvard to gain access to US advanced technology, to circumvent US security laws and to stifle criticism of it in the United States. "For too long, Harvard has let the Chinese Communist Party exploit it," a White House official told Reuters on Friday, adding the school had "turned a blind eye to vigilante CCP-directed harassment on-campus." Harvard did not respond immediately to requests for comment. The school has said the revocation was a punishment for Harvard's "perceived viewpoint," which it called a violation of the right to free speech as guaranteed by the US Constitution's First Amendment. Harvard's links to China, which include research partnerships and China-focused academic centres, are longstanding. The ties have yielded major financial gifts, influence in international affairs and global prestige for the school. Former Harvard President Larry Summers, who has at times been critical of the university, called the Trump administration's move to block foreign students the most serious attack on the university to date. "It's hard to imagine a greater strategic gift to China than for the United States to sacrifice its role as a beacon to the world," he said in an interview with Politico. Health training In a statement, the Chinese embassy in Washington said: "Educational exchanges and co-operation between China and the United States are mutually beneficial and should not be stigmatised." The presence of Chinese students at Harvard and the school's links to the country are not evidence of wrongdoing. But the complexity and overlapping nature of the connections have been opaque enough to attract attention and criticism. The China-related issues cited by the Trump administration echo the work of the Republican-led House of Representatives' Select Committee on China. For example, Harvard provided public health-related training to Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC) officials after 2020. That year the US imposed sanctions on the Chinese paramilitary organisation for its role in alleged human rights abuses against Uyghurs and other Muslim ethnic groups in Xinjiang. The Department of Homeland Security said those engagements with XPCC continued "as recently as 2024." China vehemently denies any accusations of wrongdoing in Xinjiang, but both the Trump and Biden administrations have defined Beijing's policies in the region as "genocide." In another episode that has drawn questions, US business intelligence firm Strategy Risks said that Ronnie Chan, who facilitated a US$350 million (S$450 million) donation to Harvard in 2014 that led to its school of public health being named for his father, property developer T.H. Chan, is a member of the China-United States Exchange Foundation. The Hong Kong-based organisation, which says its aim is to foster dialogue between the two countries, has been classified as a foreign principal under US law, requiring US lobbyists working for it to disclose that work to the US government. Former professor convicted Former Harvard Professor Charles Lieber was scrutinised by a Trump programme started in 2018 called the China Initiative, which was focused on fighting Chinese espionage and intellectual property theft and investigated researchers and universities over whether they disclosed financial ties to Beijing. He was convicted in 2021 of lying about his ties to China in connection with federally funded research. In April, he became a full-time professor at a Chinese university. The initiative was halted under the Biden administration after critics said it led to racial profiling and a culture of fear that chilled scientific collaboration. US lawmakers from both parties have expressed worries about the efforts by Beijing-linked student associations to monitor political activities. In April 2024, a Harvard student activist was physically ejected from an event by a Chinese exchange student - not faculty or security staff - for interrupting a speech by China's Ambassador Xie Feng. Pressure has mounted on Harvard in Trump's second term, with the Education Department in April asking the university to provide records on its foreign funding after it said a review of required reporting on large foreign-source gifts and contracts revealed incomplete and inaccurate disclosures. The Trump administration's moves against Harvard have nonetheless alarmed some China experts. Yaqiu Wang, a US-based human rights researcher who came to the US from China as a student, said the Trump administration's move to ban foreign students at Harvard was "completely counterproductive." "The concerns over the Chinese government's transnational repression attempts to silence critics are very legitimate, and also espionage concerns are legitimate." Wang said. "But to try to address that by banning, not only Chinese students, but foreign students, is just beyond comprehension." [[nid:718349]]
NDTV
24-05-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Long Advantageous, Harvard's China Ties Become A Political Liability
Washington: Harvard University's links to China, long an asset to the school, have become a liability as the Trump administration levels accusations that its campus is plagued by Beijing-backed influence operations. On Thursday, the administration moved to revoke Harvard's ability to enroll foreign students, saying it fostered antisemitism and coordinated with the Chinese Communist Party. Among them are Chinese nationals who made up about a fifth of Harvard's foreign student intake in 2024, the university said. A U.S. judge on Friday temporarily blocked the administration's order after the Cambridge, Massachusetts, university sued. The concerns about Chinese government influence at Harvard are not new. Some U.S. lawmakers, many of them Republicans, have expressed worries that China is manipulating Harvard to gain access to U.S. advanced technology, to circumvent U.S. security laws and to stifle criticism of it in the United States. "For too long, Harvard has let the Chinese Communist Party exploit it," a White House official told Reuters on Friday, adding the school had "turned a blind eye to vigilante CCP-directed harassment on-campus." Harvard did not respond immediately to requests for comment. The school has said the revocation was a punishment for Harvard's "perceived viewpoint," which it called a violation of the right to free speech as guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment. Harvard's links to China, which include research partnerships and China-focused academic centers, are longstanding. The ties have yielded major financial gifts, influence in international affairs and global prestige for the school. Health Training In a statement, the Chinese embassy in Washington said: "Educational exchanges and cooperation between China and the United States are mutually beneficial and should not be stigmatized." The presence of Chinese students at Harvard and the school's links to the country are not evidence of wrongdoing. But the complexity and overlapping nature of the connections have been opaque enough to attract attention and criticism. The China-related issues cited by the Trump administration echo the work of the Republican-led House of Representatives' Select Committee on China. For example, Harvard provided public health-related training to Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC) officials after 2020. That year the U.S. imposed sanctions on the Chinese paramilitary organization for its role in alleged human rights abuses against Uyghurs and other Muslim ethnic groups in Xinjiang. The Department of Homeland Security said those engagements with XPCC continued "as recently as 2024." China vehemently denies any accusations of wrongdoing in Xinjiang, but both the Trump and Biden administrations have defined Beijing's policies in the region as "genocide." In another episode that has drawn questions, U.S. business intelligence firm Strategy Risks said that Ronnie Chan, who facilitated a $350 million donation to Harvard in 2014 that led to its school of public health being named for his father, property developer T.H. Chan, is a member of the China-United States Exchange Foundation. The Hong Kong-based organization, which says its aim is to foster dialogue between the two countries, has been classified as a foreign principal under U.S. law, requiring U.S. lobbyists working for it to disclose that work to the U.S. government. Former Professor Convicted Former Harvard Professor Charles Lieber was scrutinized by a Trump program started in 2018 called the China Initiative, which was focused on fighting Chinese espionage and intellectual property theft and investigated researchers and universities over whether they disclosed financial ties to Beijing. He was convicted in 2021 of lying about his ties to China in connection with federally funded research. In April, he became a full-time professor at a Chinese university. The initiative was halted under the Biden administration after critics said it led to racial profiling and a culture of fear that chilled scientific collaboration. U.S. lawmakers from both parties have expressed worries about the efforts by Beijing-linked student associations to monitor political activities. In April 2024, a Harvard student activist was physically ejected from an event by a Chinese exchange student - not faculty or security staff - for interrupting a speech by China's Ambassador Xie Feng. Pressure has mounted on Harvard in Trump's second term, with the Education Department in April asking the university to provide records on its foreign funding after it said a review of required reporting on large foreign-source gifts and contracts revealed incomplete and inaccurate disclosures. The Trump administration's moves against Harvard have nonetheless alarmed some China experts. Yaqiu Wang, a U.S.-based human rights researcher who came to the U.S. from China as a student, said the Trump administration's move to ban foreign students at Harvard was "completely counterproductive." "The concerns over the Chinese government's transnational repression attempts to silence critics are very legitimate, and also espionage concerns are legitimate." Wang said. "But to try to address that by banning, not only Chinese students, but foreign students, is just beyond comprehension."
Economic Times
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Economic Times
How Trump admin links Harvard to Chinese military
Harvard's alleged ties with Chinese paramilitary Live Events Alleged Harvard collaboration with Chinese researchers funded by Iran Harvard researchers' alleged link with Chinese military (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel By barring Harvard University from taking international students, the Trump administration has escalated its campaign against several prominent American universities. The move came after Harvard refused to provide information that the government demanded about some foreign student visa holders at Harvard. The university said the move by the Trump administration - which affects thousands of students - was illegal and amounted to retaliation. The Trump administration accuses Harvard of not cooperating with government inquiries and fostering a campus environment hostile to Jewish students, supporting pro-Hamas sentiment and promoting discriminatory race-based diversity shocking charge is Harvard's link to a banned entity linked to the Chinese paramilitary, though Chinese infiltration of American campuses has been widely reported for nearly a decade and often drawn attention of the US government. The Trump administration has accused the university of "coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party".The House Select Committee on China, joined by the House Committee on Education and Workforce and Chairwoman of House Republican Leadership Elise Stefanik, sent a letter to Harvard University a few days ago demanding transparency and accountability regarding the university's partnerships with foreign adversaries and entities implicated in human rights abuses.A House Select Committee is a special sub-committee formed by the United States House of Representatives to investigate specific issues or letter requested internal documents and communications from Harvard officials detailing the university's partnerships with foreign adversaries. It outlines troubling partnerships and activities that raise serious national security and ethical concerns, as per a release by the committee."On multiple occasions, Harvard hosted and trained members of the sanctioned, paramilitary organization XPCC—one of the primary implementers of the CCP's genocide against the Uyghur people," the letter claims. "As you know, the PRC has arbitrarily detained as many as 1.8 million Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and members of other Muslim minority groups in a system of extrajudicial mass internment camps, and XPCC operates at the forefront of the CCP's genocide against the Uyghur people. Harvard provided services to XPCC on multiple occasions after the U.S. Treasury Department listed XPCC on the SDN List in 2020. Treasury's sanctions generally prohibit U.S. persons from contributing or providing any funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of a designated party as well as the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any designated party." The letter says XPCC has used the fig leaf of health care-related efforts to whitewash the CCP's crimes in letter also accuses Harvard of mentioning its link to the banned entity in a document but later deleting that reference. "In November 2019, Harvard hosted a training course on health finance in collaboration with the Chinese government, and Harvard's press release at the time specifically touted XPCC's participation (though Harvard appears to have later removed this reference)," claims the letter says Harvard collaborated with the banned Chinese entity even after significant public reporting about mass detentions, relentless surveillance and gross human rights abuses against Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang. Even after the said Chinese entity was sanctioned by the US government, Harvard continued to provide services to it for years, claims the to an event organised in 2023, the letter accuses Harvard of trying to hide its link to the banned Chinese entity. "Notably, Harvard opted to omit XPCC from its press release while the Chinese government's press statement for the same event highlighted XPCC's participation. Additionally, Harvard's press release shows blurred name plates for four of five panelists, which raises questions about why Harvard wanted to keep their identities hidden," the letter letter by the House Select Committee on China also alleged Harvard's link with the Iran government. "Harvard researchers have also worked with PRC-based collaborators on projects funded by an Iranian government agent," the letter claims. "One Harvard researcher conducted scientific research with researchers from a PRC defense-linked university funded through a grant from this Iranian government agent. This research paper was written in partnership with a professor at Zhejiang University , a Chinese university that hosts multiple Chinese defense laboratories and cooperates closely with China's military. The research received funding from a grant from the Iranian National Science Foundation.""This is not an isolated incident," the letter claims. "Harvard researchers worked on multiple projects across multiple years, all funded in part by the Iranian National Sciences Foundation. We identified at least four such projects since 2020, and one as recent as 2024. As you may know, under the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations, the Office of Foreign Assets Control has specifically disallowed transactions... when they involve the Iranian government and its instrumentalities. This funding from an Iranian government agent raises serious concerns and may violate U.S. law."The letter also claims that Harvard researchers worked with researchers at Chinese military linked institutions on US projects funded by the US Department of Defence."For example, Harvard researchers worked with faculty associated with Tsinghua University on research funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) that explored zero-indexed materials, which has optic-chip applications, a technology that could substantially improve artificial intelligence capabilities," the letter claims. "In another example, a Harvard researcher worked with a professor associated with Zhejiang University on a paper researching polymer science funded by the U.S. Air Force, among others. This polymer research holds potential applications in areas such as aircraft construction. In yet a third instance, a Harvard researcher worked with academics associated with the Huazhong University of Science and Technology (Huazhong University) on research funded by the U.S. Air Force that explores materials such as shape memory alloys. Shape metal alloys were noted to have aerospace applications. All three institutions are publicly linked to China's military.""Tsinghua University, General Secretary Xi Jinping's alma mater, conducts defense research for the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and has been implicated in cyber-attacks against the United States. Zhejiang University hosts multiple Chinese defense laboratories and is linked to economic and cyber espionage. Huazhong University hosts a significant number of PLA-linked defense laboratories and has close links to China's defense industry," the letter letter also claimed that Harvard researchers routinely worked with Chinese military-linked institutions on research that can advance China's military capabilities.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Harvard University's alleged ties to Chinese paramilitary group, Iran-backed research spark GOP probe
Harvard University is facing demands from key House Republicans to explain allegations it trained members of a Chinese paramilitary group and worked with Iran-linked researchers. In a letter sent this week, Reps. John Moolenaar, R-Mich., chairman of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party; Tim Walberg, R-Mich., chairman of the Education and the Workforce Committee; and Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., requested internal documents and communications from Harvard officials detailing the university's partnerships with foreign adversaries. The lawmakers raised alarm over Harvard's repeated hosting and training of members of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC) — a paramilitary organization sanctioned by the U.S. government for its role in the Chinese Communist Party's genocide against Uyghur Muslims. According to the letter, Harvard allegedly used Department of Defense funding to partner with Chinese universities on research with potential military applications. Harvard Updates Lawsuit After Trump Cancels Additional $450M In Funding Between 2020 and 2024, Harvard researchers also collaborated on at least four projects funded by an agent of the Iranian regime, raising concerns about violations of U.S. sanctions laws. Read On The Fox News App Harvard's China Health Partnership reportedly hosted healthcare policy training sessions that included XPCC officials, a fact highlighted by Chinese government outlets. "We are deeply concerned the services and resources provided through these events may violate U.S. law and could have been deployed by XPCC to further repress the Uyghur people and other ethnic minorities in China," the lawmakers wrote. Harvard replied to a request for comment: "We can confirm receipt and will respond to the Chairs' letter." Harvard President Claims 'Unfounded Retaliation' Amid Trump Funding Feud The letter points to several specific research collaborations: In one case, Harvard researchers received DARPA funding to work with Tsinghua University faculty on zero-indexed materials — technology that could advance artificial intelligence systems. In another, a Harvard researcher partnered with a Zhejiang University professor on polymer science research funded by the U.S. Air Force, which could be applied to aircraft construction. A third project involved shape memory alloys, materials with aerospace applications, researched alongside faculty from Huazhong University, also under Air Force funding. "Harvard researchers should not be contributing to the military capabilities of a potential adversary," the letter stated. The lawmakers also noted that Harvard researchers have routinely worked with Chinese military-linked institutions on dual-use technologies, including microelectronics, AI, and quantum science. Additionally, the lawmakers raised concerns over Harvard's organ transplant research involving China-based collaborators, citing growing international scrutiny of China's forced organ harvesting practices. "Harvard trained members of a sanctioned Chinese paramilitary group responsible for genocide, and its researchers partnered with Chinese military universities on DoD-funded research and worked with researchers funded by the Iranian regime," said Moolenaar. "These are not isolated incidents — they represent a disturbing pattern that puts U.S. national security at risk. The Select Committee's investigation will deliver answers, expose the truth, and hold Harvard accountable to the American article source: Harvard University's alleged ties to Chinese paramilitary group, Iran-backed research spark GOP probe
