Anecdotal reports suggest that both the United States and China are increasing restrictions on travel by educators between the countries. Some experts worry about the effect those actions could have on understanding between the world's two largest economies. In recent weeks, news media have reported on how some professors and researchers learned they would no longer be able to travel freely between the two countries. These academics have been making such trips for many years, but are no longer permitted to do so. One Chinese scholar was stopped by U.S. federal agents at Los Angeles International Airport in January as he prepared to return to Beijing. The New York Times reported that the agents took his passport. Then the officials cancelled the 10-year visa that he had used to travel freely between the countries. Michael Pillsbury works for the Hudson Institute and has advised the Trump administration on China policy. He completed a visa request so he could attend a conference in Beijing. Last week, he told the Axios website that the Chinese embassy in Washington delayed action on his visa for so long that he was unable to attend.
