France allocates additional €100 million to attract US researchers

France has pledged €100 million in funding to woo US-based researchers, hit by Donald Trump’s crackdown on academia, and make Europe a “safe haven” for science. 

Speaking at a conference dubbed "Choose Europe for Science" at Paris's Sorbonne university, French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen outlined plans to make Europe a magnet for global researchers, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

Macron called for Europe to be seen as a "safe haven" for researchers, free from political interference. He described US science policy under Trump as a “diktat” and a “grave error” and announced that the country would commit an additional €100 million from the France 2030 program. 

“There can be no lasting democracy without free and open science,” he said.

Similarly, Von der Leyen confirmed a new €500 million funding package for 2025-2027, aimed at bolstering Europe’s research sector.

“We are choosing to put research and innovation, science and technology, at the heart of our economy. We are choosing to be the continent where universities are pillars of our societies and our way of life,” she added.

She also said she wanted EU-member states to invest 3 percent of gross domestic product in research and development by 2030.

In April, the French president had already called on foreign researchers, particularly from the US, to "choose France" and introduced a funding program aimed at helping universities and research institutions cover the costs of bringing foreign scientists to the country.

By Sabina Mammadli