Pentagon orders 30 colleges to sever 'problematic' ties to China, Russia, Iran

Federal research funding could be eliminated for 30 of America’s top colleges if they don’t review academic collaboration with “foreign entities of concern” such as Iran, Russia and China.

Pentagon officials this week said the security checks will help them anticipate emerging threats and adapt to evolving adversarial tactics.

The academic institutions requiring greater scrutiny include Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Johns Hopkins University.

“Universities are critical partners in executing a wide range of [Department of Defense] research programs, and the Department must therefore ensure that our research investments are well protected from foreign exploitation,” said Joseph Jewell, assistant secretary of war for science and technology.

By Aug. 31, the universities on the list must complete the full review to assess the exposure of sensitive or export-controlled research and implement mitigation plans, including the termination of “problematic partnerships.”

“The Department [of Defense] has zero tolerance for academic partnerships that compromise our national security,” said Emil Michael, undersecretary of war for research and engineering. “Institutions that receive funding from American taxpayers must uphold the highest standards of research security, and these mandated audits will ensure accountability across the board.”

Three of the targeted institutions on the list — Harvard; the University of California, Berkeley; and Johns Hopkins — did not respond to questions from NewsNGR about the Pentagon funding threats.

Glenn Tiffert, a China expert and research fellow at the Hoover Institution, said it wasn’t clear if anything triggered the Pentagon’s decision to order the security review.

“It’s hard to know whether there’s an acute risk that has been identified across these institutions or whether they’re just trying to attend to larger systemic concerns,” Mr. Tiffert said. “The Department of Defense has not really been that detailed in the announcement.”

Every year, U.S. universities conduct billions of dollars’ worth of military-sponsored research projects funded primarily by organizations such as the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the Army Research Office and the Office of Naval Research.

The academic study subjects that face possible funding freezes range from advanced hardware and artificial intelligence to the use of drones in combat and biodefense against infectious diseases.

This isn’t the first time American universities faced threats from the government to have their federal funding cut. In April 2025, officials in the nation’s capital issued more than 75 stop-work orders on Defense Department grants awarded to Cornell University. The funding was later restored after a settlement agreement with the DOD.

Cornell was also on the list of universities that must conduct security reviews.

An official with the American Council on Education said colleges have worked for many years with federal policymakers to safeguard research and be good partners in confronting the threat of malign foreign actors.

“Audits of federal grants are routine and done on a regular basis and do not automatically indicate there will be a negative finding,” said Sarah Spreitzer, vice president and chief of staff for government relations at the American Council on Education. “We hope to continue to be a resource to the [DOD] and across the federal research agencies in addressing national security concerns.”

Rep. John Moolenaar, Michigan Republican, is chairman of the House Select Committee on China. He said it was important for U.S. universities to have complete knowledge about their foreign academic partners.

He said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is taking an important step to protect taxpayer-funded research from exploitation by Beijing and other foreign adversaries.

“Universities that repeatedly fail to follow basic research security guidelines and ignore problematic foreign relationships should face real consequences for their abuse of American taxpayer dollars,” Mr. Moolenaar said. “Research partnerships and collaboration with Chinese entities linked to the [Chinese Communist Party] and the [People’s Liberation Army] present undeniable national security risks.”

Mr. Tiffert said there has been a tightening of academic security standards over the past decade, and what was acceptable five or 10 years ago is not the case today. He acknowledged there might be “growing pains” in some of the colleges on the list about complying with the directive.

“There are system issues with regard to due diligence and ensuring that when we partner with international institutions, particularly those in places like China, that we do so with appropriate guardrails in place,” he said. “That means you know who your partners are, adopt appropriate protocols to mitigate any risks that you might have identified and, most of all, ensure that you’re compliant with the standards that were in effect at the time, and evolving standards because the standards are always changing.”