Pentagon Claims It Shut Down 80 Chinese Cultural Bodies at US Universities
US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth claimed in a video message that the department has halted 80 organisations linked to China’s cultural and propaganda programmes over the past two months at 30 US universities.
According to him, these bodies were created for purposes including stealing intellectual property and influencing American students.
Hegseth described Confucius Institutes and their affiliated organisations as a threat to US national security, and claimed that after the US Congress imposed bans on these institutes, new groups with different names and bylaws emerged with similar functions.
Confucius Institutes, funded by the Chinese government, provide Chinese-language education and cultural programmes at universities and educational centres around the world. But the US government and a number of its lawmakers have repeatedly expressed concern over China’s possible political influence through these institutes.
Since 2018, the US Congress has imposed restrictions on funding for universities hosting Confucius Institutes and has shut down many of these bodies. The war secretary’s claim about removing this number of new organisations from universities comes amid Washington’s continuing concerns over China’s cultural and political activities.
