The Trap of Securitizing Science

In recent years, science and technology have emerged as critical domains reshaping the landscape of international relations and national security. In particular, the United States and the European Union have sought to enhance the security of critical research and development and academic research in response to perceived theft and exploitation by the Chinese state and associated companies. More broadly, with the West increasingly concerned by China’s rapid advance as a science and technology powerhouse, policymakers have argued that heightened protection of national research resources is a necessity. We ask whether security constraints may serve to throttle the very asset that builds economic competitiveness in the first place.