【Reporter: Zhao Jiandong】According to a report by Reuters on the 18th, the US Department of Agriculture recently announced that it has fired 70 foreign contract researchers for the purpose of food supply chain security after conducting so-called “national security screenings” on four countries including China and Russia. In response to the frequent use of “national security” as a reason by the US to undermine exchanges and cooperation between the two countries, China has repeatedly stated its position: urging relevant US officials to establish a correct understanding of China, view China and its relations with the US objectively and rationally, stop attacking and smearing, and refrain from engaging in actions that are detrimental to the stability, health, and sustainable development of China-US relations.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Source: English Media
Reuters reported that a spokesman for the USDA said, “The department has been authorized to fully review the qualifications of contract researchers and has confirmed that approximately 70 researchers from ‘countries of concern’ will no longer be allowed to participate in the department’s projects.” The report stated that Sonny Perdue, the US Secretary of Agriculture, announced an agricultural security plan on July 8th, which includes banning citizens of the aforementioned four countries from purchasing US farmland and terminating existing research collaborations with these countries. Perdue claimed that these measures are crucial for ensuring the security of the US food supply.
Thomas Henderson, the chairman of the 1657 local chapter of the Federal Government Employees Union, said that these researchers used to work at the Agricultural Research Service under the USDA. Henderson also stated that most of the fired personnel are Chinese postdoctoral researchers who have signed two-year contracts with the agency and undergone scrutiny before taking up their posts. “Some people found their access cards invalid when they arrived at work on July 9th,” he said.
Reuters reported that due to the federal government’s “recruitment freeze” extended until October 15th, the USDA is currently unable to fill these vacant positions. Henderson warned that this would force multiple agricultural research projects to be suspended, including vaccine development aimed at preventing deadly toxins in undercooked beef. Henderson stated, “We don’t have enough talent to push forward these research projects now. This will set our research back by years, even decades.”
The report did not mention any comment from the USDA on concerns about research capabilities being impacted.
Regarding the US restrictions on Chinese citizens and other perceived “foreign rivals” from purchasing land in the US, at a regular press conference on July 9th, spokesperson Mao Ning stated that the US generalizing the concept of national security and depriving certain national institutions and citizens of their rights to purchase land and real estate is a typical discriminatory practice that violates market economy principles and international economic and trade rules, ultimately harming the US’s own interests. We urge the US to immediately stop politicizing economic and trade issues.
Lyu Xiang, an expert on American issues, previously stated in an interview with Global Times that from available data, Chinese citizens hold a very small proportion of US farmland and it is not worth hyping up. However, the US government deliberately stirs up this topic, which serves both to cater to the anti-China, fear-China, and hatred-China sentiment prevalent in US society by creating舆论热点 to divert public attention for its domestic political purposes and reflects concerns from some US local interests that fear foreign capital entering would impact their advantageous position in the land market. Although there is currently no evidence indicating a trend of Chinese citizens purchasing large amounts of US land.