Science and technology are central pillars of China's national strategy, underpinning the country's ambitions for economic modernization, global competitiveness, and national security. In this report, the authors analyze how China conceptualizes science and technology as part of the country's broader national strategy, particularly under Xi Jinping's leadership, and how China's approach contrasts with international norms and practices.

China's Science and Technology Strategy in Perspective

Historical Evolution, Political Drivers, and Global Implications

Shanshan Mei, Judith Huismans

ResearchPublished May 5, 2026

Science and technology (S&T) are central pillars of China's national strategy, underpinning the country's ambitions for economic modernization, global competitiveness, and national security. In this report, the authors provide an analysis of how China conceptualizes S&T as part of its broader national strategy. The authors draw on a variety of publicly available sources, including official Chinese government documents, China's policy statements, Chinese and international academic literature, and international reports. The report begins with the historical and political context that has shaped China's approaches to S&T. The authors then examine the policy landscape since 2012 under Xi Jinping's leadership, focusing on key guiding principles, national strategies, and policy instruments. Finally, the authors address the characteristics of China's S&T approach that contrast with international norms and practices.

Key Findings

  • Scientific and technological development is explicitly framed as a component of China's political strength and national security. Science serves both economic modernization and strategic autonomy.
  • Xi's doctrine of technological self-reliance and self-strengthening marks a decisive turn from technology importation to mastery of core technologies, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), semiconductors, and advanced manufacturing.
  • Reforms to the Ministry of Science and Technology and the creation of the Central Science and Technology Commission consolidate control over research planning, funding, and implementation, integrating industry, academia, and defense.
  • The concept of military-civil fusion extends beyond traditional dual-use innovation to form an integrated national strategic system that unites economic, scientific, and defense planning. This structure seeks to enable coordinated mobilization of resources across civilian and military sectors, thereby accelerating technological progress and reinforcing national resilience. However, such integration also blurs boundaries critical to global research security, intellectual property protection, and institutional autonomy in international collaboration.
  • Data security, cybersecurity, and intelligence laws give China extensive authority over scientific data and research activities, complicating international collaboration.
  • China seeks leadership in technical standards for emerging technologies, such as fifth-generation telecommunications, the Internet of Things, and AI, using standards to project industrial and geopolitical influence.
  • The United States and other countries and regions are strengthening research security frameworks, data-governance rules, and standards strategies to balance scientific openness with protection of national and economic interests.
  • Global actors face both opportunities and risks in cooperating with China. Effective engagement demands institutional awareness, transparency mechanisms, rigorous research security practices, and shared ethical standards.

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Mei, Shanshan and Judith Huismans, China's Science and Technology Strategy in Perspective: Historical Evolution, Political Drivers, and Global Implications. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2026. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA4104-3.html.
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