President Emmanuel Macron on Friday invited foreign researchers to work in France, in an apparent effort to lure U.S. scientists hit by federal research spending cuts under Donald Trump.
“Researchers from the world over, choose France, choose Europe,” Macron said on X.
The government will next month launch a funding program to help universities and other research bodies cover the cost of bringing foreign scientists to France, he said.
The announcement comes a day after officials said that the first researchers fleeing U.S. spending cuts imposed by Trump will start work at a French university in June.
Aix Marseille University said its “Safe Place for Science” scheme received a flood of applicants after announcing in March it would open its doors to U.S. scientists threatened by cuts.
University president Eric Berton said he wanted to see a new status of “refugee scientist” be created, and for more U.S. researchers to be welcomed in France and Europe.
“Here in France, research is a priority, innovation a culture and science a limitless horizon,” Macron said in Friday’s tweet.
The “Choose France for Science” initiative will on May 5 launch a dedicated platform for applications to host international researchers, the government said on a new website.
“France is committed to standing up to attacks on academic freedom across the globe,” it said, adding that the programme would enable “universities, schools, and research organizations” to apply for co-funding from the government to host researchers.
Since Trump’s return to the White House, U.S. universities have been threatened with massive federal funding cuts, causing research programmes to face closures and staff to fear possible detention and deportation for their political views.
The president’s latest target is the prestigious Harvard University, which Trump called “a joke” and said it should be stripped of government research contracts for refusing to allow outside political supervision.
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