Fox in the Henhouse
Over a recent two-year period, the Pentagon funded hundreds of projects done in collaboration with universities in China and institutes linked to that nation’s defense industry, including many blacklisted by the US government for working with the Chinese military.
The projects have allowed China to exploit US research partnerships for military gains while the two countries are locked in a tech and arms rivalry.
“American taxpayer dollars should be used to defend the nation — not strengthen its foremost strategic competitor.”
“Failing to safeguard American research from hostile foreign exploitation will continue to erode US technological dominance and place our national defense capabilities at risk.”
1,400 research papers published between June 2023 and June 2025 acknowledged support from the Pentagon and, at the same time, were done in collaboration with Chinese partners. The publications were funded by some 700 defense grants worth more than $2.5 billion. Of the 1,400 publications, more than half involved organizations affiliated with China’s defense research and industrial base.
Dozens of those organizations were flagged for potential security concerns on US government lists, though federal law does not prohibit research collaborations with them. The Defense Department money supported research in fields including hypersonic technology, semiconductors, AI, advanced materials and next-generation propulsion.
Many of the projects have clear military applications.
In one case, a geophysicist at Carnegie Science, a research institution in Washington, worked extensively on Pentagon-backed research while holding appointments at Chinese Academy of Sciences and Hefei Institute of Physical Sciences.
The scientist, who has done research on high-energy materials, nitrogen and high-pressure physics — all of which are relevant to nuclear weapons development — has been honored in China for his work to advance the country’s national development goals. The case is “a deeply troubling example” of how Beijing can leverage US taxpayer-funded research to further its weapons development.
In another Pentagon-backed project, Arizona State University and the University of Texas partnered with researchers from Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Beihang University to study high-stakes decision-making in uncertain environments, which has direct applications for electronic warfare and cyber defense, the report said. The money came from the Office of Naval Research, the Army Research Office and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
Shanghai Jiao Tong University is under the supervision of a central Chinese agency tasked with developing defense technology, and Beihang University, in Beijing, is linked to the PLA and known for its aerospace programs.
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Fox in the Henhouse 
Chinese Academy of Sciences and 