WASHINGTON -FBI Director Christopher Wray told Sen. Marco Rubio on Tuesday that the agency shares his concerns with Confucius Institutes at American schools, including five in Florida.
"We have been watching that development for a while," Wray said at an Intelligence Committee briefing. "It is just one of many tools that they take advantage of. We have seen some decrease recently in their own enthusiasm and commitment to that particular program but it is something that we're watching warily and in certain instances have developed appropriate investigative steps. "
Rubio recently wrote a letter to five schools in Florida to warn about the Chinese-government run institutes. The University of West Florida quickly moved to cut ties.
"It is my view they're complicit in these efforts to covertly influence public opinion and to teach half-truths designed to present Chinese history, government or official policy in the most favorable light," Rubio said Tuesday.