Philippine Defence Chief Warns Chinese Teaching Exchanges Pose Grey Zone Threat Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jnr has sounded a warning about Chinese teaching exchanges, raising concerns that these initiatives could be exploited as conduits for grey zone influence and state sponsored disinformation.
On the surface, academic exchange programmes between the two nations appear to promote cultural understanding and people to people diplomacy. However, beneath this façade lies a more complex narrative.
Reports have emerged of language instructors in Manila being trained by Guangzhou's Jinan University, which has ties to China's Communist Party's United Front Work Department (UFWD).