Three research papers involving a University of Sheffield academic received funding from an organisation named in an MI5 espionage alert, according to The Sheffield Tribune.
The organisation is the China General Technology Research Institute, known as CGTRI. MI5 issued an espionage alert on 30 September saying CGTRI has "very strong ties" to China's Ministry of State Security.
The Security Service says CGTRI's primary purpose is to fund research which directly improves the Chinese intelligence service's technical capability for espionage.
MI5 has advised UK universities to review ongoing or planned collaboration involving CGTRI, to check the ultimate source of funding behind research collaborations, and to make academics aware of the implications of the National Security Act 2023.
The Sheffield Tribune says it identified three papers involving a University of Sheffield academic where CGTRI funding was acknowledged.
This is a serious national-security issue and does not mean the Sheffield academic involved knowingly assisted espionage.
Source information
Source: MI5, University of Sheffield, The Sheffield Tribune
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