The China Press, a US based publication sponsored by the Chinese government, reported that the Chinese State Councilor Liu Yandong announced China’s support of the "800 Plan." The plan consists of: a scholarship for 800 people, an invitation to 800 US students to attend a summer camp in China and an invitation to 800 US education professionals to visit China every year.
The report suggested that the demand of learning Chinese is heating up in the States. It helps improve the strategic relationship between the two countries.
Source: The China Press, April 19, 2009.
http://www.chinapressusa.com/huajiao/2009-04/16/content_207951.htm
[Editor’s note: The plan is channeled through the Chinese state-sponsored Confucius Institute, which offers Chinese language courses with messages considered “positive” by the Chinese government.]