Japan Applies Extra Scrutiny to foreign students
Japan is asking universities for greater scrutiny of foreign students and scholars to prevent technology leaks to nations such as the People’s Republic of China. The move is partly for national security but also to safeguard exchanges with United States and European universities.
A string of recent U.S. arrests of Chinese academics over spying allegations was a wake-up call for Japan, officials said.
At a time of debilitating supply-chain disruptions, intellectual property theft and cyberattacks, economic security has become a top priority for policymakers globally and a vital area of diplomatic cooperation.
The drive to increase monitoring in academia is part of a push to expand Japan’s export controls, in tandem with an economic security bill passed in June 2022.
Under the new guidelines, universities are being asked to conduct background checks and flag individuals with ties to foreign governments or defense-related institutions. (Pictured: Students walk on the University of Tokyo campus.)
The U.S. Embassy in Japan said it welcomed the revised guidelines. It said the U.S. would look for ways to help Japan and its universities protect against “real and serious” research security challenges.
Chinese nationals made up 44% of Japan’s nearly 280,000 foreign university students in 2020, according to government data, while the U.S. was the top destination for Japanese researchers, followed by China, in 2019. Reuters
