Viewpoint: European science should be a bridge to China, not a wall

Just a few weeks into Donald Trump’s return to power, the world is witnessing a narrow-minded and autocratic policy regime – one especially harmful to US science. But for Europe, I believe it offers a window of opportunity for science and innovation.

The global challenges of our time require more, not less, global collaboration in research and education. These challenges will not be met by the insular science policies of America-first and -only. In its place, Europe can stand up for international collaboration and academic freedom, including with China. To turn this opportunity into reality requires a concerted effort to strengthen European research and innovation ecosystems. In this manner, we can rebuild science leadership internationally.

A history recap: when Trump was first elected president in 2016, US science policy took a sharp bend. His 2019 “China Initiative”, with its (mostly futile) prosecutions of scientists accused falsely of spying for China, devasted the careers of many researchers and harmed US science. Officially, in 2022, then-President Biden ended that initiative – but in fact a hardened attitude towards China remained mainstream policy in the US. Attempts to follow suit in Europe have been advocated by a number of politicians. Now, I believe Trump’s new term will have an even more chilling effect on international collaboration, politicising further scientific research.

Europe should set its own direction

How to maneuver Europe’s science policy in this time of high uncertainty? Although the US is a key ally, Europe needs to define its own science policy to benefit the long-term interest of its own citizens. I believe cooperation with China should be part of that policy. China is participating in the European fusion project ITER. It is a key member of the World Health Organisation and UNESCO, and supports the Paris climate deal from which Trump just (again) declared a US departure. Already, there are numerous collaborations between European and Chinese universities. 

I say all this from my own experience. During my time as vice president of international affairs for KTH-Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, and later on as a member of the international advisory board of Shanghai Jiatong University (one of China’s top engineering universities), I have closely observed the development of education, research and innovation in China. Since the “Open Door” policy of Deng Xiaoping in 1978 began welcoming foreign companies, support to research and innovation has increased every year – sometimes by double-digit numbers. Coming back from a visit to Shanghai and Nanjing in January, I saw that trend is continuing. China is engaged in a variety of large science infrastructure projects that will be highly attractive to EU scientists. Parallel to basic research, Chinese universities are engaged strongly in applied research, in close cooperation with industry. It may offer progress in battery and solar panel production, for instance. 

China also shows that less-developed countries can catch up by supporting education and research. We see similar investments today in India and other developing countries. Advance in research is not a zero-sum game. Progress in one country benefits the entire global community by moving the frontier of science. Europe should see these scientific investments by aspiring nations as an opportunity to foster and strengthen broader diplomatic and trade ties with them. By contrast, Trump’s isolationist science policy will harm the US and increase the attractiveness of Europe in the global R&D marketplace. It will boost the flow of talent to our universities – indeed, we start to see this already. The time when a single nation could dominate science has long since passed.

There are risks – but manageable

International cooperation – whether with China or any other nation – carries risks to intellectual property and national security. I do not minimise that risk: There have been reports of some Chinese research institutions downplaying or hiding their military links, and much political agitation over claims that Chinese-owned online services like Tik-Tok are channeling private data to Beijing. Certainly, knowledge security is important to Europe. 

But these concerns need to be balanced with academic freedom – not a mere talking-point at scientific conference, but actually enshrined in the constitutions of some countries and many universities in Europe. When it comes to dual-use technologies, national interests are not served by building up a new bureaucracy vetting research projects. We see this happening already in some countries, decreasing research efficiency. To be sure, Europe needs to be confidant that each university and each individual researcher is both responsible and accountable. Many countries have guidelines on how to do this, and support mechanisms like a special advisory board for researchers – as the Netherlands and some other countries have established – may be the best way to help. Outright theft of IP needs to be dealt with through bilateral mechanisms, where concerted action of the EU should prevent other nations from intruding on the results of Europe’s research community.

Europe has unique standing in R&D through its very large number of excellent institutions in all member states. The world is facing unprecedented challenges: climate change, pandemics, bacterial resistance, AI, water scarcity and more. The next pandemic, like the last one, will not stop at EU borders. But science will contribute to the answers, depending on how well and how fast we foster international collaboration and encourage talent flow. 

Europe can be at the center of this endeavour. The present attempt to restrain international cooperation is worrying many scientists in the US. Europe should by no means follow a similar approach.

Ramon Wyss is senior professor and former vice president, international affairs, at KTH-Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. He is also a member of the international advisory board of Shanghai Jiatong University, and was formerly guest professor at other Chinese universities and served on various international panels evaluating educational programmes and scientific research.