[throwaway487548]

This is what globalization is all about. Someone, lets say US and EU, do very costly and high skilled labour intensive R&D and then sell the results all around the world (just take a look at what is going on in genetic engineering and pharma - billions and billions are being paid in salaries and other expenses every year, look at Uber, which develops its own AI software, while losing billions, etc).

Of course, the soviets and chinese are unhappy, because they are self-proclaim themselves as being no less "great" and capable, while, in fact, they have nothing even vaguely comparable with the US R&D machine, fueled with top talent and endless investment bank's money from all over the world (Saudis, Softbank, Norwegian sovereign fund, etc).

And, of course, being an R&D hub of the world is absolute win in the long run.

The tiny Swiss being the world leaders of R&D in industrial robotics is another great example. And soviets and chinese have nothing but propaganda, false claims and unsupported imperial ambitions.

[neolefty]

Is the complaint, then, that China gets to profit from US-funded R&D?

Because genuinely, the human race as a whole is benefiting from that R&D — and also from China's appropriation of it — by getting cheaply produced implementations!