Australian Foreign Minister Benny Wong urged universities to request greater research cooperation with partners outside the United States after the Trump administration threatened to finance discounts in this sector.
At least seven Australian universities face a possible decrease in financing after they received long questionnaires from the United States government asking how their projects are compatible with President Donald Trump’s priorities in local and foreign policy. The universities of the Australian industry group said that the change may affect up to $ 600 million ($ 377 million) in research financing.
Wong said that just as the Australian government was encouraging companies to expand its commercial markets in response to global turmoil, the education industry needed its example.
She told Australian Broadcasting Corp. On Wednesday, “We have to realize that we live in a different world.” “We will continue to clarify the issue to the United States that cooperative research benefits from both countries, but I say to ensure that we are varied our engagement issues in all our economic sectors.”
Australia, one of Washington’s oldest allies to run a trade deficit with the United States, is preparing for the next round of definitions revealed by the Trump administration within 24 hours. Prime Minister Anthony Albaniz said It will not negotiate On a set of concerns raised by the American Trade Representative in a report issued this week.
The CEO of Australian universities, Luke Shehi, told ABC last week that the University of Monash and the University of Technology Sydney was among those who were subjected to potential US financing discounts.
He said: “This is really worrying because the closest ally of Australia, a person who finances more than half a billion dollars of research in the Australian system that is looking for Australian experience for the benefit of the two countries, is all at risk.”
This story was originally shown on Fortune.com
