Japanese Government Strengthens Background Checks On Foreign Students From Communist China

According to local reports on May 23rd, the Japanese government recently ordered its universities to tighten background checks on foreign students and visiting scholars to prevent leaks of cutting-edge technologies to countries such as Communist China.
The report mentioned that in recent years, the U.S. has arrested many academicians associated with the CCP government on suspicion of espionage, which has also served as a wake-up call to the Japanese government. Even academicians sponsored by the CCP can pursue doctoral programs in Japan in cutting-edge radar technologies and return to Communist China after graduation, even going as far as using their research results for military purposes. For this reason, the Japanese government believes that the unrestricted admission of foreign students by its universities may become a weak link in national security.
It is reported that Japanese universities have already begun implementing the new regulations this month, in which they conduct background checks on foreign students as well as visiting scholars and identify those who have ties with foreign governments or defense-related institutions. Japanese authorities have said that this measure is aimed at safeguarding its own national security and protecting the exchange programs between Japanese and Western universities. The data shows that in 2020, there were more than 280,000 international students studying in Japan, with students from Communist China accounting for 44%.