Lawmakers have raised concerns over Harvard University's partnerships with foreign entities linked to national security and ethical issues. The House Select Committee on China, along with the House Committee on Education and Workforce and Chairwoman of House Republican Leadership Elise Stefanik, sent a letter to Harvard demanding transparency regarding these collaborations.
The letter highlights several troubling associations, including training members of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC), a U.S.-sanctioned group involved in the genocide of Uyghur Muslims. It also mentions research partnerships funded by the Department of Defense with Chinese military-linked universities such as Tsinghua, Zhejiang, and Huazhong Universities. Additionally, it points out collaborations with Iranian-government-funded researchers and organ transplantation research involving PRC-based collaborators amid allegations of forced organ harvesting by the CCP.
Chairman Moolenaar expressed concern about these activities stating, "Harvard trained members of a sanctioned Chinese paramilitary group responsible for genocide, and its researchers partnered with Chinese military universities on DoD-funded research and worked with researchers funded by the Iranian regime." He emphasized that these are not isolated incidents but part of a pattern that threatens U.S. national security.
Chairman Walberg criticized Harvard's involvement in aiding CCP influence and collaborating on military projects funded by Iran. He stated that this was unacceptable and called for President Garber to provide answers to Congress.
Chairwoman Stefanik demanded full transparency from Harvard University in cooperating with the investigation to ensure no American institution aids CCP’s military modernization or Iran’s technological ambitions under academic pretenses.
The lawmakers have requested internal documents and testimony from Harvard officials, including Professor Winnie Yip, setting a deadline of June 2 for compliance.
This inquiry adds to ongoing challenges faced by Harvard concerning antisemitism on campus, donor revolts, leadership instability, and now its foreign ties which pose reputational and legal risks amid bipartisan concerns about adversarial influence in U.S. institutions.
