EC tells universities, funders to bolster research security

The European Commission has proposed a series of new measures to bolster research security in response to fears that critical technologies and knowhow could be leaking to geopolitical rivals, writes David Matthews for Science|Business.

Rather than hard rules, the proposals are a series of recommendations to be implemented by member states, universities and funders, like including exit plans in research and a new pan-EU organisation to share information.

The proposals scrupulously avoid naming exactly which countries the commission is worried about, and which kind of research projects it would like to stop. But presenting the plans, Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager gave a clear signal that – unsurprisingly – Brussels has questionable research collaborations with China in its sights, particularly projects that could leak valuable knowledge to the Chinese military.
Full report on the Science|Business site