The US Congress banned NASA from using federal money in collaborations with China without explicit approval because they were worried about Chinese missile improvements.

It’s just more Red Scare action. China has developed a very robust IP system with stronger protections and a dedicated court just for IP issues. Meanwhile, many companies sign technology transfer agreements with China in exchange for their help with manufacturing. The issue usually ends up becoming one that is purely along racist (the Chinese couldn’t make this technology with us) and political lines (we need to fight the evil commies) rather than reality.

This particular instance was one of a private satellite company who worked with China and then a US senator said this was used to improve Chinese ballistic missiles. I haven’t looked into that in depth to see if it has any merit, but I know they can’t just steal the technology and suspect there’s more to the story than we see on the surface.

yup