Media backlash in China after US think tank hails 46% drop in Chinese student visas

Report stating US could benefit from fewer Chinese and Indian students draws criticism over claims of politicising education The report by the Washington-based Centre for Immigration Studies (CIS) has triggered a backlash in China, where Chinese media accused the organisation of recycling claims that Chinese students could pose security risks and of politicising normal academic exchanges. Published this week, the CIS report analysed US State Department data to show that F-1 student visas issued to Indian nationals fell 60 per cent and those to Chinese nationals declined 46 per cent compared with average levels from previous years. The report said the decline, if sustained, could “greatly benefit American students and national security”. It argued that having fewer Chinese students in the United States could cut risks linked to technology transfer and espionage. “Reductions in the number of PRC students coming to US colleges and universities will reduce the overall level of espionage and technology theft on campus and will be to the benefit of US national security,” it said, referring to the People’s Republic of China.

Read the full article at the source →