![]() ![]() The DOJ has neither officially defined the China Initiative nor explained what leads it to label a case as part of the initiative.Our reporting and analysis showed that the climate of fear created by the prosecutions has already pushed some talented scientists to leave the United States and made it more difficult for others to enter or stay, endangering America’s ability to attract new talent in science and technology from China and around the world. While likely incomplete, the database represents the most comprehensive accounting of the China Initiative prosecutions to date. Today, after months of research and investigation, MIT Technology Review is publishing a searchable database of 77 cases and more than 150 defendants. While the threat of Chinese intellectual property theft is real, critics wonder if the China Initiative is the right way to counteract it. The DOJ has not publicly defined the initiative or answered many basic questions about it, making it difficult to understand, let alone assess or exercise oversight of it, according to many civil rights advocates, lawmakers, and scholars. To date, only about a quarter of defendants charged under the initiative have been convicted, and about half of those defendants with open charges have yet to see the inside of an American courtroom.Īlthough the program has become a top priority of US law enforcement and domestic counterintelligence efforts-and an unusual one, as the first country-specific initiative-many details have remained murky. Instead of focusing on economic espionage and national security, the initiative now appears to be an umbrella term for cases with almost any connection to China, whether they involve state-sponsored hackers, smugglers, or, increasingly, academics accused of failing to disclose all ties to China on grant-related forms. Now, an investigation by MIT Technology Review shows that the China Initiative has strayed far from its initial mission. ![]() ![]() Started in 2018, the initiative was a centerpiece of the Trump administration’s hardening stance against China. And a man sentenced for organizing a turtle-smuggling ring between New York and Hong Kong.įor years, the US Department of Justice has used these cases to highlight the success of its China Initiative, an effort to counter rising concerns about Chinese economic espionage and threats to US national security. ![]() A Harvard professor accused of lying to investigators about funding from China. A hacker indicted for breaking into video game company servers in his spare time. “The Department of Justice and the FBI are going to hold people accountable for that and protect our nation’s innovation and ideas.A visiting researcher at UCLA accused of hiding his connection to China’s People’s Liberation Army. “What it does mean is that when China violates our criminal laws and well-established international norms, we are not going to tolerate it, much less enable it,” he said. shouldn’t welcome Chinese students or visitors. Wray noted, however, that these threats do not mean the U.S. universities should work to protect their foreign students from coercion from foreign governments, Wray said. company may find themselves losing their intellectual property in the long run.Īdditionally, U.S. While a partnership with a Chinese company may seem profitable today, a U.S. companies to carefully consider their supply lines and whether and how they do business with Chinese companies. Wray also called for a whole-of-society response to these threats. Just last month, a Harvard University professor was charged with lying about his contractual arrangement with China. ![]()
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