Bjelis recalled that he had been impressed by the senior Chinese delegation when the institute was inaugurated on 13 May 2012.
Several hundred students are enrolled at the institute.
Culture is the foundation of bilateral cooperation and the rich cultures of which Croatia and China are proud guarantee the strengthening of the relations between the two countries, said the ambassador.
He said he had visited the institute a number of times and that its activity suited Zagreb, adding that the Hanban, the Chinese government's national office for the teaching of the Chinese language, shared this opinion.
Said office is one of the strategic partners of the University of Zagreb in the Confucius Institute project, alongside the Shanghai Institute of Foreign Trade, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce and the City of Zagreb.
One of the leaders of the Zagreb Confucius Institute, Kresimir Jurak, said it had been agreed with Hanban that ten Chinese language professors would teach at the institute as of October 1 instead of the current four.
He invited everyone to attend the opening of the Chinese Culture Week at the institute tonight, with a cultural and economic programme. Interest in the latter is especially big.