A French scientist was denied entry to the United States after immigration officers searched his phone and found messages in which he criticized the Trump administration, France’s research minister, Philippe Baptiste, revealed on Monday.

“I learned with concern that a French researcher” from 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 expelled,” Baptiste said in a statement to Agence France-Presse (AFP), which was published by Le Monde.

According to Baptiste, the US authorities reportedly took the measure because “the researcher’s phone contained exchanges with colleagues and friends in which he expressed a personal opinion on the Trump administration’s research policy.”

The Incident reportedly occurred on March 9. Another AFP source stated that US authorities accused the researcher of sending “hateful and conspiratorial messages.” He was also informed of an FBI investigation but was later told that “charges were dropped” before being expelled.

The Department of Homeland Security has not responded to requests for comment.

Baptiste, a vocal critic of the Trump administration and its approach to research funding, condemned the incident and reaffirmed France’s commitment to academic freedom. “Freedom of opinion, free research, and academic freedom are values that we will continue to proudly uphold. I will defend the right of all French researchers to be faithful to them, while respecting the law,” he said.

Coinciding with the scientist’s expulsion, Baptiste had been actively encouraging American researchers to relocate to France, citing concerns over US cuts to scientific research. On March 9, he published a letter inviting researchers to move, writing, “Many well-known researchers are already questioning their future in the United States.

We would naturally wish to welcome a certain number of them.” The following day, he shared an image from a virtual meeting with a researcher at the University of Maryland School of Medicine who had accepted an invitation to work in France.

On March 12, Baptiste posted a video of a television appearance in which he criticized the US approach to funding health, climate, energy, and artificial intelligence research. “It is being chainsawed in the United States,” he said.

The specific conference the scientist was set to attend remains unclear, but the 56th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference was held outside Houston from March 10 to 14.

(THE GUARDIAN)