Russia is actively expanding its educational cooperation with countries in East and Southeast Asia. These initiatives encompass both bilateral agreements between universities and research institutes, as well as multilateral educational projects.

Teaching Russian Language and Culture

Russian language schools and cultural centers are most widely represented in China. One of the most important organizations in the country is the Russian Cultural Center in Beijing. This institution hosts events promoting Russian culture, organizes Russian language courses, facilitates the training of Russian language teachers, and collaborates with Chinese universities. More and more schools and cultural centers are being established in other countries in the region: Malaysia, Vietnam, and Cambodia; the creation of Russian language schools is planned for the near future in Laos.

However, Russian language and culture courses are most widespread in China, while in other Far Eastern countries they are less widely available, although demand for them is gradually growing.

Experts discussed this issue during the Eastern Economic Forum (September 3-6, 2025). A proposal was made to create a specialized program aimed at promoting interest in the Russian language in the Asia-Pacific region. The author of this article believes that the implementation of such initiatives is extremely important, as the entire educational (and other) cooperation between countries relies on foreigners’ knowledge of the Russian language and their understanding of Russian culture.

Academic Mobility

Another area of ​​focus is academic mobility programs. These primarily involve student exchange initiatives. The most productive cooperation in this area is with China. In August 2025, approximately 51,000 Chinese students

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