Canada bans 85 Chinese research organisations that ‘may pose’ national security threat

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Following the US' suit, Canada recently published a list of 85 Chinese research institutions that “may pose” a threat to national security and sensitive research.

The list was posted earlier this month, which also included 12 Iranian and six Russian organisations that, according to the Canadian government, have links with military, national defence or state security entities.

The Canadian government has touted its latest move as an effort to secure the country's research and development in certain industrial sectors. These areas include advanced weaponry, aerospace and space technology, and quantum science and technology — from economic espionage and theft.

Federal officials reportedly held a technical briefing to announce the impacts of the move. However, they were not able to state how the ban would impact Canadian research institutions, but emphasised how there was a cost of sensitive information being “exfiltrated.”

Remarkably, the dozens of Chinese research institutions, banned by Canadian government, include 211,985 well-known institutions of higher learning, such as the National University of Defense Technology, Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Nanjing Institute of Information Engineering, Sichuan University, Tianjin University, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Hunan University among several others. 

Canada’s new policy applies to the funding directed by certain granting agencies and the Canada Foundation for Innovation. Specific grant applications dealing with “sensitive technology” must be vetted in order to ensure that any researcher associated with the project are not part of the banned organisations. The Canadian government has also stated that applications with researchers connected to the listed institutions would be held ineligible. 

The move has forced Canadian institutions to stop cooperating with Chinese organisations in the list, in order to get funding from the government. This new policy came into effect in September 2023 followed by spot checks and federal officials saying that they will monitor the list and the institutions regularly. 

The move was spearheaded by Canada’s former foreign minister and now Canada’s industry minister, François-Philippe Champagne along with Health Minister Mark Holland and Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc. 

Canada has repeatedly followed America’s suit of making similar moves. Earlier in October 2023, Ottawa announced it will ban WeChat on government devices. Even as the ban was effective immediately, the president of Canada's Treasury Board Anita Anand had stated that there was ‘no evidence’ if WeChat led to compromise of any government information. 

China has repeatedly hit out at Canada for unveiling hostile measures. Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning has said in a statement that the Canadian government’s measures of suppressing Chinese institutions seriously undermines scientific and technological exchanges and cooperation between both the nations.

Mao Ning said, “The Canadian government has suppressed and contained some Chinese universities and scientific research institutions on the grounds of so-called national security risks, which has seriously undermined scientific and technological exchanges and cooperation between China and Canada and is not conducive to the improvement and stability of relations between the two countries. China is strongly dissatisfied and firmly opposed to this.”

The Chinese Embassy in Canada’s Spokesperson also criticised the measure expressing strong dissatisfaction and resolute objection. According to Global Times, the spokesperson noted that in 2022, China’s total investment in research and development (R&D) exceeded 3 trillion yuan ($418.2 billion), making it the world’s second-largest economy in terms of R&D spending. 

Moreover, Global Innovation Index 2023 released by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) placed China in 12th position. At the time, the spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Canada emphasised that the scientific and technological exchange and cooperation between China and Canada are two-way and mutually beneficial and criticised the politicisation and weaponization of issues related to the same. 

China-Canada relations have been at an all-time-low. In January this year, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi raised the matter with Canadian Melanie Joly, at the latter's request. Wang told Joly that the recent degradation of the bilateral relations is triggered by Canada’s sudden shift of perception from China. 

Wang reportedly also told Joly that China hopes Canada can objectively, rationally, and correctly interpret China's domestic and foreign policies. He also mentioned that the current situation was not started by China and that Beijing is always willing to maintain open dialogue. 

China neither exports ideology nor challenges the international order, but has consistently upheld the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, the international system with the UN at its core and the international order based on international law, Wang said, according to Global Times. 

Chinese students studying in Canada have more than half-a-decade of history. The first batch of nine Chinese students arrived in Canada in 1973. Since then, publicly sponsored study abroad and academic exchanges have become crucial for both nations’ ties. Chinese students make up for the second largest group of international students in Canada, just after India. 

Amid sino-US trade war, sino-Canadian ties have also suffered a blow. During Former US President Donald Trump’s administration, an executive order was unveiled banning undergraduate students from Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin Engineering University, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Nanjing University of Science and Technology and Beijing University of Science and Technology. Chinese students from eight universities including the University of Posts and Telecommunications come to study in the US.

Though it is not deemed surprising that Canada followed US’ suit, since they’re both members of Five Eyes alliance, Canada directly banned nearly 100 institutions and “blacklisted” them. 

Even though the ban does not prohibit entry and study abroad applications of Chinese students, security investigations into these applications are expected. Recently, in one of the first cases, ​​the Canadian Federal Court supported the decision of a visa officer of the Department of Immigration to refuse to allow a Chinese student to study in Canada on the grounds of "potential threat to national security.” Therefore, Canada’s latest move has ignited fears that maybe the ban does not limit just to the academic institutions.