Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee ranking member John Barrasso (R-WY) is blasting Energy Department officials for quietly meeting with Chinese government officials and members of the Chinese Communist Party on climate change and reducing emissions, claiming these meetings raised national security concerns and questions about the department’s transparency.
In a letter sent to Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm on Monday, the Republican conference chairman cited several Chinese media outlets to outline three separate meetings that occurred between CCP and People’s Republic of China figures and DOE officials, one of whom was Deputy Energy Secretary David Turk. Barrasso claimed that these meetings “went beyond mere diplomatic courtesies,” and instead served as “forums” where U.S. research was offered up to benefit Chinese companies and, by extension, the CCP.
“The fact that DOE engaged in such misguided interactions, especially in light of the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) persistent and pervasive theft of the United States’ scientific and intellectual assets, is profoundly alarming,” Barrasso wrote. “The apparent desire to keep these meetings shielded from the American public’s scrutiny, with coverage found exclusively within Chinese media outlets, raises significant concerns about DOE’s transparency and broader collaboration with the CCP.”
Throughout the letter, Barrasso repeatedly highlights the Chinese officials’ political ties to argue the meetings represented a threat to security. Barrasso’s letter is the latest in a wave of criticism from Republican lawmakers who have hit the Biden administration for working jointly with China to combat emissions. The two countries are the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases and the largest powerhouses for renewable technologies.
The letter outlines a virtual January meeting between Turk and Chinese officials to launch a working group to fight climate change. The working group was agreed upon last year in a November statement from the State Department, detailing that both countries would agree to enhance cooperation to address the issue. The January meeting, according to China Daily — a government-owned English daily newspaper – “engaged in in-depth and friendly discussions on key areas of cooperation, including energy transition, methane, the circular economy, and promoting low-carbon provinces, states and cities.”
The letter also documents an October meeting held between Stephanie Duran, the DOE’s China Office director, and Sun Ying, president of the state-owned China Construction Technology Company. The members of the meeting, according to a rough translation of the CCTC’s press release, were able to reach “consensus on in-depth cooperation in green and low-carbon fields.”
Another meeting highlighted was between Noah Deich, a senior adviser for carbon management within the department, and Zhang Guangjun, China’s then-vice minister of science and technology, to discuss “relevant science and technology issues.”
Barrasso is requesting the department give further details about the meetings — more specifically, if there were national security and counterintelligence efforts conducted beforehand, and a list of agreements that officials may have entered with PRC officials, CCP members, or private citizens. The senator is also investigating why the DOE chose not to publicize the meetings, in contrast to Chinese media outlets.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
In a statement to the Washington Examiner, a DOE spokesperson defended the meetings, saying department officials will continue to meet with relevant parties to advance innovation and enhance competitiveness.
“Global collaboration on key issues — such as basic scientific research and addressing the climate crisis — are critical to sustaining America’s global leadership while promoting greater prosperity and economic growth for generations to come,” the spokesperson wrote. “To that end, Department officials have and will continue to strategically engage with partners and competitors from across the globe to protect and promote American innovation, advance our technological competitiveness, and strengthen our national security.”
