BERLIN: Germany’s education minister on Saturday called for a revision of student exchange practices with China, citing an increased risk of scientific espionage posed by Chinese students who come to study in Germany on full state scholarships.
“China is becoming more and more competitive and is a systemic rival in the domain of science and research,” Bettina Stark-Watzinger said in an interview published on Saturday by the Mediengruppe Bayern.
The minister hailed a decision by the Friedrich-Alexander University (FAU) in Bavaria, which regularly partners with German industry in research projects, to no longer accept China students whose sole financing comes from the China Scholarship Council (CSC), which is a state institution.
According to recent reports published in Deutsche Welle and the Correctiv investigative platform, recipients of these scholarships must sign a loyalty oath to the Chinese state or risk legal proceedings.
Stark-Watzinger hailed the German university for its decision, saying it was motivated by “the realization that the freedom of opinion and scientific freedom anchored in German Basic Law cannot be fully exercised by the CSC scholarship recipients due to the conditions of their scholarships and there also exists an increased risk of scientific espionage.”
“The FAU decision should prompt other institutions to revisit the terms of their cooperation with the CSC,” she said.
In mid-July, Germany toughened its approach to China, publishing a 64-page strategy in response to a “more assertive” China, sparking ire from Beijing.
The document, covering security policy as well as economic and scientific cooperation, was the product of months of wrangling within the German government over its strategy toward China.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz tweeted Thursday that Berlin had “reacted to a China that has changed and become more assertive,” and that his government wanted to reduce economic reliance on Beijing in critical areas.
Beijing said the new approach would increase “man-made risks” and “exacerbate divisions” in the world.
Berlin’s harder line has sparked fears in German industry, which has grown increasingly dependent on China.
Corporate giants such as Volkswagen and Siemens have in recent months outlined growth strategies that rely heavily on the Chinese market.
Germany warns of spying ‘risks’ with some China students
https://arab.news/gaqx2
Germany warns of spying ‘risks’ with some China students
- According to recent reports published in Deutsche Welle and the Correctiv investigative platform, recipients of these scholarships must sign a loyalty oath to the Chinese state
- In mid-July, Germany toughened its approach to China, publishing a 64-page strategy in response to a “more assertive” China, sparking ire from Beijing
Myanmar, Afghan hopeful scholars mourn UK study visa ban
- Myanmar, Afghanistan, Sudan and Cameroon citizens will be barred from obtaining university visas
- Britain’s travel block is “really painful” for Afghan women hoping to escape to an education abroad, said one female
YANGON, Myanmar: Aspiring students are lamenting Britain’s ban on education visas for their war-weary countries — dashing dreams of bettering themselves and their home nations.
Myanmar, Afghanistan, Sudan and Cameroon citizens will be barred from obtaining university visas, London announced this week, saying asylum applications by visiting students had “rocketed” nearly 500 percent from 2021 to 2025.
“It’s like the country is punishing the weak, the most vulnerable people,” said one woman from Myanmar.
She was preparing for a scholarship interview for a master’s in climate change finance when her plans were upended by Downing Street’s decree on Wednesday.
“I could not focus the whole morning,” the 28-year-old told AFP from Yangon, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons in a country riven by civil war since a 2021 military coup.
“I can’t picture my future.”
Like in much of the developed world, immigration has become a divisive issue in Britain.
Efforts to beat back arrivals mirror the sweeping travel bans issued by US President Donald Trump which have shut out citizens of Myanmar, Sudan and Afghanistan.
Since the chaotic military withdrawal of Britain, the United States and other NATO nations in 2021, Afghanistan has been ruled by a resurgent Taliban government which has banned women over age 12 from attending school.
Britain’s travel block is “really painful” for Afghan women hoping to escape to an education abroad, said one female child social worker in Ghazni province, who asked to remain anonymous for security reasons.
She has now canceled her plans to study for a master’s in both the US and the UK.
“Now I am trying to be hopeful, but I think it would also be a mistake,” said the 27-year-old.
In the summer of 2024, Arefa Mohammadi fled to neighboring Pakistan, living in limbo as she applied to universities.
She got an offer to study public health in England but now cannot accept it.
“It was truly shocking for me,” said the 24-year-old.
“This situation put me in a place where I haven’t any goals, because all my goals and all my futures are unpredictable.”
- ‘Cruel and short-sighted’ -
In Kabul, a 39-year-old man faces similar heartbreak.
He was accepted to study specialist subjects related to water management at three universities in England and Scotland.
“When I was a child I witnessed several challenges like flash floods, water scarcity, environmental neglect, inefficient irrigation systems,” he said, asking to remain anonymous for security reasons. “To address these challenges I made my application.”
“I hoped to acquire modern knowledge. It’s impossible to acquire in Afghanistan,” he added.
Some 33 million people in the country face severe water shortages, aid agencies say, a result of compounding multi-year droughts, climate change and infrastructure battered by decades of war.
Britain’s Labour government made the decision to curb visas as the right-wing Reform UK party surges in opinion polls with its hard-line stance against immigration.
The UK Home Office said almost 135,000 asylum seekers had entered the country through legal routes since 2021.
Activist organization Burma Campaign UK called the visa ban “exceptionally cruel and shortsighted.”
“The opportunity to come to the UK to study is life-changing for the individual student but also an investment in the future of Myanmar,” said program director Zoya Phan in a statement.
One exiled Myanmar journalist has been living over the border in Thailand after escaping the military rule which has clamped down on press freedoms.
“When the military coup happened I was just 22, so I had a lot of dreams,” she said. “But over the past five years there have been a lot of struggles — I couldn’t complete my dreams.”
Every year since the junta takeover she applied for further education to buoy her spirits.
But she received an email Thursday morning canceling her place to study for a master’s at a London university.
“Everything is gone,” she said. “My UK dream is all disappeared.”
