Chinese Ambassador to the U.S. Xie Feng revisited the Sino-U.S. Friendship House in Muscatine, Iowa on Oct. 22 and met with old friends of President Xi Jinping and China in Iowa.

Ambassador Xie Feng was welcomed by Luca Berrone, who served as a guide to Xi Jinping during his stay in Iowa in 1985, and Dan Stein, chairman of the Muscatine Commission on Cooperation with China.

They toured the house and recalled President Xi’s two visits to Muscatine in 1985 and 2012. “Follow President Xi Jinping’s foot steps to advance China-U.S. peoples’ friendship,” Xie wrote in the guestbook.

In his meeting with Sarah Lande and Joni Axel, Ambassador Xie said the current China-U.S. relations have undergone many changes, and the so-called “political correctness” that is tough on China has spread in some parts of the U.S. But he still believes that the common interests of China and the United States far outweigh their differences. The enthusiasm of the two peoples for exchanges and cooperation has not changed, and there are many American people who are friendly to China.

Chinese President Xi Jinping pointed out that the hope and foundation of China-U.S. relations lies in the people and the future in the youth, and he hopes the friendship between the two peoples will continue to grow, Xie added.

2023 marks the 40th anniversary of the Sister State partnership between the U.S. state of Iowa and the Chinese province of Hebei. Xie said he hoped to further promote exchanges and cooperation between China and Iowa and Muscatine in various fields such as agriculture, culture, education, etc., help stabilize and improve China-U.S. relations, and benefit the people of both countries.

Lande appreciated President Xi for his cherishing friendship with old friends, saying that a world full of friendship is a peaceful world. She said that when people have the opportunity to deepen their understanding of each other’s culture through constant visits, this kind of friendship will continue.

Ambassador Xie also shared with several Chinese-learning students in Muscatine the Chinese characters 和 and 合, hoping that the youths of both countries can become ambassadors of bilateral friendship and promote better future for all.

“和 (peace, harmony) is made up of two parts: crops 禾 and mouth 口. When everyone is well fed, we’ll have peace and harmony in the world. 合 (cooperation) includes three parts: human 人, one 一, and mouth 口. So win-win cooperation is about ensuring everyone to get a share of the pie. Together, 和合 represents the Chinese vision of a world of unity and harmony,” he explained.

During his visit to the Kimberley family farm, Xie recalled that he visited the farm with President Xi Jinping in 2012. He said that agriculture is one of the earliest, most effective and potential areas of cooperation between China and the United States. He called on China and the U.S. to use advanced agricultural technologies to jointly address global food security challenge.

Xie pointed out that China is the world’s largest importer of agricultural products, and the United States is the world’s largest exporter of agricultural products. Agricultural cooperation is highly-complementary between the two countries with bright prospects. It is hoped that the two sides will further strengthen cooperation in agricultural science and technology, green agriculture and other areas, and share big markets and opportunities, he added.

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