The National Association of Scholars applauds the University of Michigan’s recent decision to end its joint institute with China’s Shanghai Jao Tong University (SJTU). The University of Michigan announced it was ceasing ties with SJTU after two Chinese students at UMich were arrested for trespassing and photographing U.S. Naval installations in Florida.
The University of Michigan’s decision comes after the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party issued a letter urging for the university to sever ties citing SJTU’s involvement in Beijing’s development of nuclear weapons and advanced submarine and fighter jet technology.
The University of Michigan is the latest major American university to sever ties with a Chinese university, after Georgia Tech announced the closure of its Shenzhen Institute last year.
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