LISTEN HERE:
Chinese and Russian entities have been granted at least $1.3 billion for research projects in the United States over the last five years, according to an analysis by Joni Ernst, the Republican senator from Iowa, and watchdog group Open the Books.
The investigation discovered millions of dollars in taxpayers’ money given to organizations including a Chinese developer of military technology, a Russian health insurance provider that has since been sanctioned, and Chinese agriculture firms.
The US government also provided $2 million, which is more than previously known, to the Wuhan Institute of Virology, a Chinese state-run lab studying bat coronaviruses. Alongside the analysis, Ernst introduced the TRACKS Act, which requires all federal funding for Chinese and Russian organizations to be disclosed and monitored; Republican Representative Mike Gallagher also introduced a similar bill.
The analysis from Ernst and Open the Books tracked $490 million in US grants and contracts paid to Chinese entities and an additional $870 million paid to Russian organizations with information from the Congressional Research Service (CRS).
The Government Accountability Office’s previous estimate was that China received $48 million during the five-year period until 2021. Ernst’s research revealed that one program, a $58.7 million State Department grant, provided $96,875 to a Chinese organization, Crossroads Cultural Communication, for “gender equality” via the exhibition of New Yorker magazine cartoons.
The Department of Defense’s $51.6 million grant resulted in $6 million allocated to Beijing Juehua Trading Co., a Chinese tech company, to develop and distribute command software for the military. Under the National School Lunch Program of the Department of Agriculture, Chinese food producers were awarded $1.6 million, which was intended to help domestic producers.
Wuhan Institute of Virology was granted $2 million in research funding, which indirectly transferred through EcoHealth Alliance, a US non-governmental organization. $1.1 million of that funding came from the US Agency for International Development, and $600,000 from the National Institutes of Health. Some experts believe that the lab leaked coronavirus, which caused the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Ernst’s research also found that $4.7 million in financial aid from the federal government went directly to PAO Rosgosstrakh, a Russian health insurance firm, and that $1.45 million was granted to Russian entities for COVID-19 virus monitoring.
According to Ernst’s analysis, the Tracking Receipts to Adversarial Countries for Knowledge of Spending (TRACKS) Act is essential in tracking and disclosing federal funding for Chinese and Russian groups. This legislation aims to prevent millions of taxpayer dollars from going to enemies. Rep. Mike Gallagher introduced the bill to the House of Representatives, which will regulate the outflow of funding for Russia and China-affiliated organizations.
Republican Senator Joni Ernst and watchdog Open the Books have revealed an analysis that shows over the last five years, US taxpayers have funded research projects worth at least $1.3 billion for Chinese and Russian organizations. Military technology, health insurance providers, Chinese agriculture firms have been among the recipients. Furthermore, the US government awarded $2 million to the Wuhan state-owned laboratory in grants previously undiscovered. Ernst has introduced the Tracking Receipts to Adversarial Countries for Knowledge of Spending (TRACKS) Act, which requires the monitoring and disclosure of funding for Chinese and Russian organizations. Rep. Mike Gallagher has adopted companion legislation in the House.
Ernst and Open the Books studied United States grants and contracts paid to Chinese entities and Russian organizations. Their efforts have been successful in discovering $490 million in US grants and contracts paid to Chinese organizations and an additional $870 million paid to Russian groups. The CRS previously reported China only received $48 million throughout the five-year ending in 2021. According to Ernst’s research, a $58.7 million State Department grant provided $96,875 to China-based Crossroads Cultural Communication for “gender equality” through exhibiting cartoons found in The New Yorker. The DoD’s $51.6 million grant resulted in $6 million allocated to Beijing Juehua Trading Co., a tech company in China, for the development and distribution command software for the US military. The Agriculture Department’s National School Lunch Program gave $1.6 million to Chinese food producers in order to help domestic producers.
The $2 million given to the Wuhan Institute of Virology indirectly transferred via EcoHealth Alliance, a US non-governmental organization. The US Agency for International Development supplied $1.1 million, whilst the National Institutes of Health provided $600,000. This lab was accused by some of causing the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Amongst Ernst’s revelations, a large share of $4.7 million in financial aid was transferred from the government to PAO Rosgosstrakh, a Russian health insurance firm that was later sanctioned by the Treasury Department after the Ukraine invasion in 2022. Additionally, $1.45 million was granted to Russian entities for COVID-19 virus tracking.
Ernst’s TRACKS Act, which aims to monitor and disclose federal funding to organizations in Russia and China, is crucial, according to her research. The bill targets funding flaws from organizations supporting enemies in order to prevent waste of millions of dollars in taxpayers’ money. Gallagher, Republican Representative, endorsed similar legislation in the House to control the flow of funding to organizations in Russia and China.
Over the last five years, the United States government spent over $1.3 billion on Chinese and Russian research projects, according to Joni Ernst, the Iowa Republican Senator, and Open the Books, a watchdog organization. The experiment demonstrated that Chinese military technical support, Russian healthcare providers–including those that have been under sanction, and Chinese agribusinesses have all received millions of dollars in taxpayer funds. Moreover, state-owned Wuhan laboratory that conducted research on bat coronaviruses received $2 million in funding from the government, which is more than the previous amount reported. Ernst contributed the Tracking Receipts to Adversarial Countries for Knowledge of Spending (TRACKS) Act, which orders the reporting and surveillance of funding for Chinese and Russian organizations. Mike Gallagher, the Republican chair of the China Select Committee, introduces similar legislation to the House.
Open the Books and Ernst studied China and Russia’s US grant and contract receipts. Their attempts discovered $490 million in American funds paid to China-based partnerships and another $870 million paid to Russian companies. The Government Accountability Office had already estimated that only $48 million went to China over the last five years, including until 2021. Ernst disclosed that the State Department’s $58.7 million grant resulted in a $96,875 gift to Crossroads Cultural Communication, a Chinese organization, for promoting gender equality by displaying The New Yorker’s cartoons. The Department of Defense’s $51.6 million grant resulted in $6 million allocated to Beijing Juehua Trading Co., a Chinese tech enterprise, for the creation and management of software for US military use. The Department of Agriculture’s National School Lunch Program awarded $ 1.6 million to Chinese food producers to assist US producers.
$2 million in research funding was given to the Wuhan Institute of Virology, with $1.1 million provided by the US Agency for International Development and $600,000 by the National Institutes of Health, according to Ernst’s study. The money was indirectly transferred through a non-governmental organization based in the US known as EcoHealth Alliance. Despite some experts blaming the lab for leading the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Ernst’s study reveals this is less than initially reported. Ernst’s analysis also showed that $4.7 million was directly wired from the government to PAO Rosgosstrakh, a Russian health insurance provider, which was later penalized by the Treasury Department amid the Ukraine invasion in 2022. $1.45 million was distributed to Russian organizations in funding for COVID-19 virus monitoring.
According to Ernst’s study, controlling the flow of US federal funding for any organization in China or Russia is crucial. Ernst and Open the Books conducted research revealing that millions of dollars of taxpayers’ funds are being directed at groups that pose a threat to US interests. Ernst introduced the TRACKS Act to regulate and provide disclosure relating to federal funding for these organizations. Rep. Mike Gallagher drafted comparable legislation that was accepted by the House of Representatives.
Republican Senator Joni Ernst and Open the Books’ study have shown that Chinese and Russian research firms have been granted at least $1.3 billion in the past five years. A Chinese application developer is one of many who receives millions of dollars in US taxpayer dollars for military technology, health insurance distributors (including Russian firms sanctioned for their actions in Ukraine), and Chinese agricultural companies. Additionally, the federal government granted $2 million to the Wuhan lab that studies bat coronaviruses, which is significantly more money than previously thought. Ernst’s bill, the Tracking Receipts to Adversarial Countries for Knowledge of Spending (TRACKS) Act, would force the tracking and disclosure of all federal funding to Chinese and Russian agencies. Rep. Mike Gallagher, chairman of the China Select Committee, initiated equivalent legislation in the House.
Chinese and Russian entities over the last five years have been given at least $1.3billion for research programs by the U.S Government. A report by Joni Ernst, Republican Iowa Senator, and the watchdog group, Open the Books uncovered that a Chinese software maker for military technology support, a Russian healthcare company that has been sanctioned and Chinese agricultural firms were among the participants given millions of taxpayer dollars. The State Department granted $58.7 million of which $96,875 was allocated to Beijing-based Crossroads Cultural Communication to promote ‘gender equality by exhibiting The New Yorker’s cartoons.’ A $51.6 million grant from the Department of Defense provided $6 million of funding for Chinese technology company, Beijing Juehua Trading Co., for ‘deployment and distribution command’ software developed for the U.S military. Furthermore, agriculture-minded Chinese companies were granted $1.6 million for domestic producers. The federal government authorized $2m dollars towards the Chinese state laboratory, Wuhan, for research purposes involving the study of bat coronaviruses which indirectly transferred funds via EcoHealth Alliance, a U.S non-governmental organization.
The TRACKS Act, initiated by Ernst, would require federal funding to be traced and disclosed by organizations in China and Russia, and is, according to her analysis, vital in the prevention of the ‘flow of funding flaws’ that ‘finance our enemies.’ Representative Mike Gallagher, a Republican from Wisconsin and Chair of the China Select Committee, presented a companion bill in the house. The Open the Books and Ernst analysis determined $490 million worth of grants and offered $870 million worth of contracts to Chinese and Russian firms. The previous estimation from the Government Accountability Office was that $48m out of the $1.3bn redistributed to Chinese firms within the last five years was received by organizations. Ernst also discovered that the Russian insurance company, PAO Rosgosstrakh, received $4.7m in federal funding and an additional $1.45m went to tracking the COVID-19 virus.