The French Minister for Higher Education and Research, Philippe Baptiste, told the agency AFP that a French scientist was denied entry to the USA after immigration officers at the airport searched his phone and found messages in which he criticized the Trump administration. His professional and personal equipment would have been confiscated, and the researcher was sent back to Europe the next day. The incident occurred on March 9.
«I was concerned to learn that a French researcher, working on assignment for the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), who was traveling to a conference near Houston, was denied entry to the United States before being deported», said Philippe Baptiste. — This measure apparently was taken by American authorities because the researcher's phone contained correspondences with colleagues and friends in which he expressed personal opinions about the Trump administration's research policy».
Another source from AFP reported that US authorities accused the French researcher of «hate speech and conspiratorial messages». It was reported that he was also informed about an FBI investigation but was told that «the charges were dropped» before deportation.
As noted by Guardian, on the same day the researcher was denied entry to the USA, Baptiste published a letter urging American researchers to move to France. «Many renowned researchers are already questioning their future in the United States,» he wrote. — «We would naturally be happy to welcome them».
On March 12, Baptiste shared a video on X, in which he expressed regret that research in the fields of health, climate, energy, and artificial intelligence is «being chainsawed in the United States».