Confucius Institutes labelled US security threat

The US Department of Defense has designated Chinese-funded Confucius Institutes on American university campuses a threat to US national security, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Friday.

Hegseth said the Pentagon acted after such organisations reappeared under different names. He said 80 groups across 30 universities had emerged with different names and charters, and accused them of trying to steal intellectual property and influence American students.

Hegseth said the Defense Department had dismantled all the centres within the previous two months. Washington considers Confucius Institutes propaganda tools of the Chinese Communist Party and has taken steps to shut them down.