According to the French government, the opinion he expressed about the Trump administration’s policies on academic research prevented French scientists from entering the United States this month.
French Minister of Higher Education and Research, Philip Baptist explained that the move is worried.
“Freedom of opinion, free research and academic freedom are values that we continue to proudly support,” Baptist said in a statement. “I defend the possibility that all French researchers can be faithful to them in compliance with the law, wherever they are in the world.”
Baptist did not identify the scientist whose backs were turned away, but said the academic works at the publicly funded National Science Research Center in France, where he was traveling to a conference near Houston when border officials stopped him.
US authorities refused to enter the scientist and later deported him as his phone included exchanging messages with colleagues and friends.
It was not immediately clear why border authorities forced the scientists to stop, why they looked up the contents of his phone, or why they found the conversation undesirable.
Customs officials are permitted to search for mobile phones, computers, cameras or other electronic devices from travelers across the border. According to US Customs and Border Protectionthough agents say such cases are rare. In 2024, less than 0.01% of international travelers who arrived searched for electronics, according to the agency.
Baptist’s office declined to provide further details regarding the incident. A spokesman for the US Embassy in Paris also declined to comment.
A spokesperson for the National Center for Science and Research said the scientists who were turned away did not want to talk to the media and declined to comment further.
Agence France-Presse News Agency Reported previously The scientist refused to enter the United States.
Minister Baptist has been particularly vocal over the past few weeks by denounceing the threat to academic freedom in the United States. There, the Trump administration’s funding cuts and layoffs target higher education, scientific research and the federal government’s own scientific workforce.
Baptist urges French universities and research institutions to welcome researchers looking to leave the United States.
“Europe must be there to protect research and welcome talent that can contribute to its success,” Baptist said. I wrote it on social media After meeting with his European counterparts in Warsaw on Wednesday, he dealt with the “threat to free research in the United States.”
Jennifer Jones, director of the Center for Science and Democracy at the American advocacy group, the Union of Concern Scientists, said he was worried that incidents involving French scientists would have a calm effect on cross-border research cooperation.
“My fear is that these are more and more early cases,” Dr. Jones said. “I’ve heard from my network that people are very concerned about all sorts of international travel in either direction.”
“It should be worrying for all of us,” she added. When scientists restrict movement to conferences and other events designed to advance research, she said “it’s the masses that suffer.”
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Source: www.nytimes.com
