Haley Campaign Press Release - Comrade of the Week: Secretary of State Antony Blinken

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Secretary of State Antony Blinken earns the "Comrade of the Week" award for renewing the U.S.-China Scientific and Technological Cooperation Agreement (STA).

The STA is a four-decades-old partnership between the United States and China that promotes collaboration on science and technology. Nikki Haley called on Joe Biden and Secretary Blinken to allow the partnership to expire on August 27. Instead, they threw China a lifeline and renewed the partnership for six months.

The problem? We know China uses our civilian research for military purposes. For example, a 2018 project sought to launch balloons to study the atmosphere. A few years later, China used similar balloon technology to spy on U.S. military sites.

Last year, NBC News reported that China had recruited 154 Chinese scientists who worked on government-sponsored research at a U.S. national security laboratory. These scientists were brought back to China to develop missiles and drones for the communist regime.

The State Department says it is "clear-eyed" about the risks inherent in this partnership, but this renewal is just another example that the Biden administration isn't clear-eyed about anything when it comes to China. The administration keeps trying to make nice with China, and everytime, its communist leaders take advantage of America's naivete. That's not "clear-eyed." That's a classic case of "fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me."