Dozens of Chinese students have been interrogated by U.S. border law enforcement officers, had their visas canceled, and were repatriated at Washington Dulles International Airport for their possible connections with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
The Chinese Embassy lodged a formal protest against the United States for blocking Chinese students from entry and issued a caution over traveling through Dulles International Airport.
Chinese ambassador to the United States Xie Feng said that dozens of Chinese students holding valid visas have been denied entry over the past few months when returning to school from overseas travel or visiting relatives in China, and some were interrogated for 8 hours by officers, according to a post on the Chinese Embassy website on Jan. 29. However, Mr. Xie didn’t say the specific reasons why the Chinese students were denied entry by the United States.
The Chinese Embassy also said in a post that the U.S. officers at the airport also checked the electronic devices the Chinese students carried. The embassy didn’t disclose the exact number of Chinese students under interrogation or the specific circumstances.
CCP-controlled Chinese media reported that since the end of November 2023, at least 8 Chinese students holding legal and valid documents have been interrogated and deported by the United States at Washington Dulles Airport alone.
In a separate statement on its website, the Chinese Embassy said it had made “solemn representations” to the U.S. government about the treatment of students arriving at Dulles airport in Washington, D.C. and cautioned Chinese students who travel through the airport.
Meanwhile, several Chinese official media outlets reposted an earlier report from Qiaowang, an official Chinese website focusing on overseas Chinese affairs, detailing a few cases of Chinese students being interrogated and repatriated at Dulles Airport last year.
One of them is a Chinese student surnamed Li who went to the University of Maryland in January 2023 to study for a doctorate in computer science. When he arrived at Washington Dulles Airport, He was taken to an interview room by U.S. law enforcement officers for questioning.
According to the Chinese media report, U.S. law enforcement officers not only inspected Li’s mobile phone, laptop, and other electronic devices, but also repeatedly questioned Li if he and his family members were members of the CCP and its Communist Youth League.
In the end, the U.S. officers canceled his visa, deported him, and banned him from entry for five years.
According to the report, some students were asked whether their study in the United States and scientific research plans are related to the CCP regime’s projects, its military, and key laboratories.
