Trump-era student ban remains in effect for Chinese nationals, Beijing says

July 6 (UPI) -- China condemned an alleged U.S. decision to bar more than 500 Chinese students from acquiring student visas to study at American universities as tensions prevail between the two countries.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said Tuesday at a regular press briefing that hundreds of Chinese students accepted for enrollment at top U.S. schools were denied visas under rules promulgated during the Trump administration.

"China expresses grave concern over this and has lodged solemn representations with the U.S. side," Zhao said, confirming a formal complaint was delivered across diplomatic channels. "People-to-people exchanges are the foundation of [U.S.-China] relations."

State-owned newspaper China Daily reported Tuesday that U.S. diplomats in China denied visa requests from students focused on science and technology, noting that their applications did not meet requirements of Section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act or former U.S. President Donald Trump's Presidential Proclamation 10043.

The presidential proclamation asserts that Beijing deploys students to extract U.S. technologies and intellectual property. It reserves the right to reject Chinese nationals deemed relevant to China's "Military-Civil Fusion Strategy."

Zhao condemned the previous U.S. administration Tuesday.

"Relevant U.S. visa restrictions carry on a poisonous legacy of the Trump administration and run counter to the U.S. statement of 'welcoming Chinese students'," the Chinese spokesman said.

"They also contravene the concept of openness and freedom that the U.S. claims to champion ... and the common aspiration of the two peoples for friendly exchanges. This is nothing short of historical backpedaling."

Applicants who were rejected include students pursuing degrees in electronics, computers, mechanics, chemistry and biomedicine. Schools that had accepted the students include Harvard, Yale, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Johns Hopkins, according to China Daily.

According to the Institute of International Education 2020 Open Doors Report, about 373,000 Chinese students were studying in the United States in the 2019-2020 academic year.