Interest in learning Chinese is growing across Central Asia, while Russian is gradually losing ground. Chinese appeals to people in the region because it offers prospects for employment, doing business and studying at higher education institutions in China.
This is reported by Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service.
As of the end of 2024, almost 150,000 Central Asian residents had successfully passed Chinese language proficiency tests. With demand rising, several hundred private training centres have opened across the region.
Beijing has established 13 Confucius Institutes in Central Asian countries: five in Kazakhstan, four in Kyrgyzstan, two in Tajikistan and two in Uzbekistan. In Turkmenistan, classic-style institutes have not yet been opened, so Chinese is taught there through other structures.
Most learners study Chinese in their own countries at institutions funded by Beijing. China also provides scholarships for those who want to pursue their education directly in China.
This approach enables Beijing to involve Central Asian residents in developing bilateral relations in business, cultural and social spheres.
According to an assessment by Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service, many people in the region view modern China as a promising and positive partner, unlike Russia, which is under sanctions and is described as unpredictable.
Language policy is one of China’s tools of geopolitical influence in the region. Combined with the development of trade routes and scientific, technical and cultural co-operation, China’s “soft power” is gradually strengthening its position, weakening Russia’s influence, which was previously seen as the main guarantor of regional security.
According to intelligence data, China’s share of Central Asian countries’ foreign trade has already reached 40%, while Russia’s share, by the end of 2025, had fallen to around 15%.