Former US security officials urge funding for science research as China makes deep progress
Chuck Hagel, the former US defence secretary, Chris Miller, acting defence secretary during President Donald Trump’s first term in office, and many other former US national security officials are urging Congress to increase funding for federal scientific research.
These ex-officials raised concerns about China outpacing the US in critical technology fields. The appeal comes just the days after the National Science Foundation fired 170 people in response to Trump’s order to reduce the federal staff size.
There are questions being raised about if NSF’s budget is going to be slashed by billions. The former officials seek the US Congress to ensure at least $16 billion authorised for the agency in fiscal year 2025, according to a letter seen by Reuters.
China has considerably deepened its focus on basic and applied research. In the period from 2003 to 2007, the country globally led in just 3 of 64 critical technologies. But as of 2023, China leads in 57 of those technologies, according to the letter.
