The United States and China signed a protocol on Friday to amend the bilateral Science and Technology Agreement and extend it for five years, the State Department announced.
The agreement, first signed in 1979 by US President Jimmy Carter and Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping, aims to facilitate cooperation in areas such as agriculture, energy, space, health, environment, engineering and educational and scientific exchanges.
The amended agreement, which US officials said excludes "critical or emerging technologies", took effect retroactively from August 27 for a five-year term and was signed in Beijing by representatives of both countries. A senior State Department official told reporters that the new agreement narrows the scope of the previous agreement and puts "safeguards" in place to ensure "reciprocity and transparency."
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told reporters in February that the nature of scientific and technological exchanges and cooperation between the two countries is favorable and "mutually beneficial."
Washington-Beijing science and technology cooperation has faced criticism and raised security concerns over the years. Critics say the deal could bolster Beijing's military capabilities.
Since its inception, the agreement has been renewed approximately every five years. In August 2023 it was extended for six months and was followed by another in February this year. The temporary extension was intended to preserve the agreement while the United States negotiated its amendment. The short-term extensions also came amid scrutiny from some lawmakers, who argued that China had previously used the deal to advance military objectives against America.
In June 2023, Republican lawmaker Elise Stefanik, who has been nominated by President-elect Donald Trump to be ambassador to the UN, along with other lawmakers, wrote to Secretary of State Antony Blinken asking him not to proceed with the deal. after the expiration on August 27 of last year. They cited concerns about joint research projects between the US Department of Agriculture and Chinese entities, including dual-use technologies such as those used to analyze drone imagery for irrigation management.
The agreement enables basic research
The amended agreement focuses on research in areas such as weather, oceanography and geology. According to the State Department, it helps US science agencies with tsunami warnings, flu data, air quality monitoring, agriculture and handling of disease-carrying animals.
Another senior State Department official said the amended framework agreement allows agencies such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Energy and Agriculture departments to propose cooperation and create data-sharing agreements and joint projects. research with their Chinese counterparts.
The State Department reviews proposed collaborations, which are also subject to a broader interagency review process led by the White House. Once verified, proposals can be implemented.
If one party fails to adhere to the agreed terms, a dispute resolution mechanism is activated. Additionally, a clause allows the cancellation of proposed projects.
The amended agreement "includes intellectual property protections and imposes new hurdles for implementing agencies to protect the safety of their researchers," according to a State Department statement.
Security concerns
However, concerns persist about China's strict privacy and data collection laws, which create legal risks for American researchers handling Chinese data. It is not yet clear what protections the new agreement provides for US researchers who may use or transfer Chinese data outside of China.
Critics in Congress, including Republican Senator Marco Rubio, President-elect Trump's nominee for Secretary of State, have been outspoken opponents of continued US-China science and technology cooperation.
Earlier this year, Senator Rubio called for stronger measures to protect the security of United States scientific research. He also introduced a bill to highlight the dangers of problematic research collaborations with entities linked to China./Voice of America (A2 Televizion)
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