Politic?

This is a blog dedicated to a personal interpretation of political news of the day. I attempt to be as knowledgeable as possible before commenting and committing my thoughts to a day's communication.

Monday, June 09, 2025

"Plant-Pathogen Warfare Under Changing Climate Conditions"

"The alleged actions of these Chinese nationals, including a loyal member of the Chinese Communist Party, are of the gravest national security concerns."
"These two aliens have been charged with smuggling a fungus that has been described as a 'potential agroterrorism weapon' into the heartland of America, where they apparently intended to use a University of Michigan laboratory to further their scheme."
U.S. Attorney Jerome Gorgon Jr. 
 
"When Customs and Border Protection officers questioned Liu, he made false statements to CBP officers about the purpose of his visit to the United States, and his knowledge of the existence of the biological pathogen in his possession."
"Ultimately, Liu admitted to smuggling the pathogen and stated that he brought the pathogen into the United States so that he could conduct research on it at a laboratory at the University of Michigan where his girlfriend, Jian, worked."
FBI special agent, criminal filing 
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The two Chinese citizens allegedly sought to use the University of Michigan laboratory to conduct research on the pathogen   Getty Images
"The federal charges announced today against Yunqing Jian and Zunyong Liu, both residents of the People’s Republic of China, signify a crucial advancement in our efforts to safeguard our communities and uphold national security."
"These individuals exploited their access to laboratory facilities at a local university to engage in the smuggling of biological pathogens, an act that posed an imminent threat to public safety."
"Thanks to the exceptional investigative efforts of the FBI Detroit Counterintelligence Task Force, in close cooperation with U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Field Operations these dangerous activities have been effectively halted."
"The FBI remains resolutely committed to collaborating with our law enforcement partners to protect the residents of Michigan and defend the United States against such grave threats."
Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Detroit Field Office  
In March of 2024 Zunyong Liu, 34, applied for a B2 tourist visa to enter the U.S. Four months later in July of 2024, he arrived in Detroit. An officer during an inspection discovered a hidden note in Chinese, a round piece of filter paper and four baggies full of small clumps of reddish plant material. When asked about the materials, Liu responded that someone "must have put them into  his bag", according to the court filing, quoting an FBI agent. "After further questioning, Liu acknowledged that the materials were different strains of the pathogen Fusarium graminearum", wrote the agent.
 
Fusarium graminearum can cause a head blight that is harmful to crops, humans and animals.
Fusarium Graminearum
Fusarium gramineearum is a pathogen lethal to wheat, barley, maize and rice; it can sicken livestock and people. According to the FBI, a scientific journal describes it as a "potential agroterrorism weapon". The result of the FBI investigation was to charge Yunqing Jian, 33, and Zunyong Liu, 34, with conspiracy, smuggling, making false statements, and visa fraud. At a court appearance Tuesday, Jian was returned to prison to await a Thursday bond hearing.
 
Jian was employed at the University of Michigan lab, where Liu had also worked. During an investigation, authorities discovered a scientific article on Liu's phone titled "Plant-Pathogen Warfare under Changing Climate Conditions". Liu had exchanged messages with Jian a week before arriving in the U.S. Jian had written: "It's a pity that I still have to work for you", and his response was: "Once this is done, everything else will be easy." In February, when FBI agents visited Jian at the campus lab she was asked if she had been assisting Liu with the pathogen at the lab. "100 percent no", she responded.
 
This case represents twice in less than a week that a Chinese national with ties to the University of Michigan has been charged with federal crimes. Prosecutors on Friday unsealed a criminal case against a former University of Michigan Chinese student who had illegally voted in the 2024 election; to avoid prosecution he fled the U.S. 
 
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A citizen of China, Jian received a doctoral degree in plant pathogens from Zhejiang University. Information describing her membership in and loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party was discovered by investigators. She had received funding from a Chinese foundation to conduct post-doctoral work including research on Fusarium graminearum, capable of causing devastating diseases in crops. On July 27, according to prosecutors, her boyfriend illegally smuggled a biological pathogen at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport, discovered in his backpack. 
 
"It certainly would not be high up on the list of individual targets in recent years, but when you look at the landscape of critical infrastructure, the food supply chain is going to be an increasingly tempting target for both state and non-state actors who are continually looking for weak points to exploit in the United States."
Jon Lewis, research fellow, Program on Extremism, George Washington University 
 
 

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