China on Friday strongly criticised recent U.S. measures aimed at monitoring and reporting scientific research ties involving Chinese institutions, warning that such actions would undermine normal academic exchanges and ultimately weaken U.S. innovation.
Speaking at a regular press briefing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Washington was “suppressing and containing China” under the pretext of national security, and accused the United States of disrupting legitimate scientific and technological cooperation between the two countries.
The comments follow a move by a U.S. congressional panel focused on China, which published a so-called “whistleblower” email channel encouraging academics and university staff to report research partnerships involving entities linked to China’s defence or industrial sectors.
Mao said the initiative reflects an “overstretching of the concept of national security” and warned that it risks damaging longstanding collaboration in science, technology and higher education.
She added that in recent years, the United States has increasingly restricted academic and research exchanges, including tighter scrutiny of Chinese students and scholars, which Beijing views as discriminatory and counterproductive.
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According to the spokesperson, such policies will not enhance U.S. security or competitiveness, but instead “dampen its own innovation dynamism” by discouraging open scientific cooperation.
The dispute comes amid already strained relations between the world’s two largest economies, where technology competition has become a central point of tension.
Areas such as semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and advanced manufacturing have seen growing restrictions on cross-border collaboration, with both sides accusing each other of politicising scientific exchange.
Beijing has repeatedly called for the removal of barriers to academic cooperation, arguing that science and technology should remain “open and mutually beneficial,” while Washington maintains that certain partnerships could pose risks to national security.
Analysts say the latest exchange underscores the widening gap in trust between the two powers, particularly in high-tech sectors that are increasingly central to economic and strategic competition.
For now, no indication has been given that either side plans to ease restrictions, suggesting continued friction in scientific and technological relations in the months ahead.
