According to information from the Justice Ministry of Korea, as of December of last year, the Seoul immigration Bureau suspended all E-2 visa extensions and the issuance of any new visas for Chinese lecturers at the Confucius Institute.
The Confucius Institute in South Korea started in 2004. For the past 13 years, it has never been a cause of controversy. The original E-2 visa issuance process is simple, and the E-2 visas are easy to obtain. Some observers pointed out that this is the South Korean government’s response to the clash involving China’s restriction on South Korea.
The Confucius Institute operates through a cooperation agreement between Korean and Chinese universities. The Chinese Ministry of Education selects the Chinese lecturers. The Chinese government pays their salaries.
The Chinese government funds the Confucius Institute. In terms of geographical distribution, there are 169 Confucius Institutes in Europe, 157 in the Americas, 110 in Asia, 46 in Africa and 18 in Oceania. After the United States (109) and Britain (29), South Korea (22) has the third largest number of Confucius Institutes.
Source: Korean Daily republished by Wenxuecity, February 7, 2017
http://www.wenxuecity.com/news/2017/02/07/6000183.html