Six Australian universities have quietly shut down their on-campus Confucius Institutes (CIs), which are affiliated with the Chinese government. These closures come amid increasing scrutiny from the Australian government, which has raised concerns that the institutes might be used by Beijing to spread propaganda and monitor Chinese students abroad.
China, however, maintains that Confucius Institutes—designed to teach Chinese language and culture internationally—serve as a “bridge” to promote friendship with other countries. But globally, doubts over the Chinese government’s influence through these centres have grown, prompting similar closures in universities across the US and Europe.
According to a report by the media, nearly half of Australia’s university-based Confucius Institutes have now been closed, with only seven still operating. The institutes have been removed from the University of Melbourne, University of Queensland (UQ), University of Western Australia (UWA), University of New South Wales (UNSW), and Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT).
Several institutions pointed to disruptions from the Covid-19 pandemic as the reason for not renewing their CI agreements. UNSW, for instance, said it is developing its own Chinese studies program and remains committed to fostering open dialogue in the China-Australia relationship.
Australia’s federal government has previously signaled it would block the opening of new CIs—citing their ties to the Chinese Communist Party—and has required greater transparency in the institutes’ operations, sometimes mandating registration under the Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme.
UQ said its CI closed when its contract expired in December 2024, with no external pressure from the government. The University of Melbourne ended its partnership with Nanjing University in August 2024, saying it already offers a broad range of Chinese and Asian studies programs and saw no need to continue the arrangement.
A 2019 Human Rights Watch report described CIs as extensions of the Chinese government, accusing them of suppressing discussion on topics sensitive to Beijing. That same year, media reported that volunteer teaching applicants were required to show political loyalty to China’s government.
Dr. Jeffrey Gill of Flinders University, who researches Confucius Institutes, told media he wasn’t surprised by the closures, suggesting that foreign interference concerns may have played a role. However, he also noted that he doubts the institutes significantly shape public opinion on China in Australia or the West at large.
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