Pentagon says 30 US universities have addressed concerns over foreign partnerships

The US Department of Defense has declared its audit of foreign partnerships at 30 American universities a success, saying the institutions have addressed relationships it identified as security concerns.

In an announcement on Oct 19, the department said the reviews resulted in more than 80 “termination-related” actions, including the ending of partnerships with institutions on its Section 1286 list of foreign entities of concern and precautionary terminations involving other organisations. The department said all 30 universities had fully mitigated the identified relationships.

Seven universities singled out

The department praised seven institutions for taking additional steps to end relationships it considered problematic. They were Oklahoma State University, Pennsylvania State University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the University of South Carolina, the University of Southern California, the University of Texas at Austin and Virginia Tech.

Joseph Jewell, the assistant secretary of defense for science and technology, said the institutions had taken steps to protect research facilities, faculty and intellectual property from what the department described as foreign exploitation.

The audit followed an update to the Section 1286 list in July 2026. The list identifies foreign academic and research institutions that the US government considers a risk to national security. Most of the institutions are based in China, alongside entities in Russia and Iran.

On Aug 17, the Pentagon directed the 30 universities to conduct comprehensive reviews of their academic, financial and research ties and report their findings by August 31. Non-compliance could put their eligibility for federal research funding at risk.

University responses raise questions

The Pentagon’s declaration of success does not mean every affected partnership involved sensitive research or that all international academic ties have ended.

An analysis by The Washington Post of response letters from 17 universities found that some institutions had already planned to end certain programmes, while others reported that their partnerships did not involve sensitive technology or federally funded research. Six of the 17 universities indicated they planned to retain at least some ties with Chinese institutions.

The reviews also extended beyond research collaborations. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, for example, ended a study-abroad programme with China’s Fudan University as a precaution. Other institutions reviewed academic exchange or teaching arrangements.

The American Federation of Teachers and the American Association of University Professors had previously criticised the Pentagon’s directive, raising concerns about academic freedom, due process and the use of federal funding as leverage.

The department has said it will continue updating the Section 1286 list and assessing universities that retain relationships it considers problematic. The outcome of the initial audits marks a new stage in federal scrutiny of international academic partnerships, but the extent to which individual universities will maintain other collaborations remains an important distinction.