University asks staff to review some partnerships with China after MI5 warning
The UK's internal security service had warned universities they may have unintentionally assisted China's espionage.
University tells staff to examine some China partnerships after MI5 alert
Queen’s University of Belfast (QUB) has asked staff to review certain partnerships with China following a warning from MI5.
In an unusual step, the UK’s domestic security agency warned universities that they may have unknowingly helped China’s espionage efforts.
MI5 said the China General Technology Research Institute (CGTRI) was a front company operating for China’s intelligence and security service.
A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in London, however, said the claim was “imaginary and purely fabricated”.
Staff at Queen’s have now been “strongly advised to review any existing or proposed collaborations involving CGTRI”.
“Work is ongoing within Queen’s to do this,” an email to staff said.
“However, this may not be obvious through our existing systems and so researchers are also advised to undertake appropriate due diligence to identify the ultimate source of funding for collaborations with Chinese institutions.”
MI5 issued the warning to UK universities about CGTRI, saying it had “very strong ties” to the Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS).
Universities in the UK frequently work with universities in other countries to share research and expertise.
But MI5 said it had identified more than 100 UK-linked academics who had contributed to projects funded by the Ministry of State Security through CGTRI.
It said that in some instances the researchers would not have known about the front company’s involvement in their project.
UK academics have worked on CGTRI-funded projects covering AI, cyber-security, covert communications systems and steganography, which is the practice of hiding a secret message or file inside an ordinary message or object.
MI5 also said academics who did not sever ties with CGTRI could eventually face criminal charges for assisting a foreign state.
As a result, UK universities were told to immediately examine the funding behind any research collaboration with China.
A QUB spokesperson told BBC News NI that the university takes “responsibilities around research and national security extremely seriously”.
“Queen’s University has commenced a review around any existing or proposed collaborations involving CGTRI,” they said.
“We have also contacted staff requesting they review any existing or proposed collaborations with them and report any concerns to the relevant Faculty Dean of Research.
“We will keep this situation under review while continuing to support our collaboration, research and innovation projects locally, nationally and internationally.”
According to its website, QUB has invested more than $10m (£7.56m) in China-related research over the past decade in areas including sustainable energy, information technology, food security and cancer research.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Ulster University said they had no research links with the organisation named by MI5.