On May 24, Xinhua News Agency reported that President Xi Jinping recently sent a letter to a friend from Iowa, the United States, to Ms. Sarah Randy.
In the letter, President Xi Jinping recalled the experience of two visits to Iowa, and encouraged Ms. Randy and old friends from Iowa to continue to sow the seeds of friendship and make new contributions to the friendship between the people of China and the United States.
A beautiful friendship that has lasted for 37 years has written a new chapter again.
"I visited the beautiful state of Iowa twice and forged an indissoluble bond with the city of Muscatine." President Xi Jinping recalled fondly in the letter.
The story begins in 1985.
That year, Xi Jinping, the then secretary of the Zhengding County Party Committee in Hebei, visited the United States for the first time and stayed for two nights at the home of Dwoček, a citizen of Muscatine, Iowa.
Ms. Randy was one of the organizers of the visit that year.
In 2012, then-Vice President Xi Jinping visited the United States and revisited Muscatine.
The place to catch up with old friends is in the living room of Ms. Randy's house.
Over the years, President Xi Jinping has kept in touch with Ms. Randy and other old friends of Muscatine in various ways.
Last month, when Qin Gang, the Chinese ambassador to the United States, visited Muscatine, Ms. Randy brought out a beautiful wooden box made of Iowa walnut containing her memoir, "Old Friends: Xi Jinping and Io." Watanabe's Story" and a letter, asking the ambassador to forward it to President Xi Jinping.
Small letter, deep friendship.
Letters, replies, in this "one-to-one exchange", we feel the "Chinese people value friendship and righteousness" that President Xi Jinping often said.
In his reply letter, President Xi Jinping pointed out: "The Chinese and American peoples are both great people, and the friendship between the two peoples is not only a valuable asset, but also provides an important foundation for the development of bilateral relations."
The relationship between countries lies in the blind date of the people, and the blind date between the people lies in the mutual understanding of hearts.
In 1985, it was through getting acquainted with many simple and enthusiastic Iowa people that Xi Jinping first got a close perception of the American people.
"To me, you are America," he told Muscatine's friends at the time.
Ordinary people in Muscatine also perceive China through Xi Jinping.
"You are also our earliest Chinese friend. Although we had doubts about the Chinese people before, after getting along with you, some of our negative views about the Chinese people disappeared." Xi Jinping said.
The people are the creators of history and the true heroes.
For more than 30 years, Xi Jinping has always been committed to promoting the friendship between the Chinese and American peoples from a strategic and long-term perspective.
"The Chinese people are willing to continue to work with the American people to strengthen friendly exchanges, promote mutually beneficial cooperation, and jointly promote the well-being of the two peoples." In the reply letter, President Xi Jinping emphasized.
"Friendship is a big thing, and only a world of friendship can be a world of peace." Ms. Randy once sighed to President Xi Jinping.
She served for many years as a member of the Iowa Friendship Provinces and States Committee, and she is engaged in the cause of promoting friendship among the people.
Producer: Zhao Cheng
Planning: Huo Xiaoguang
Chief Writer: Yang Yijun
Coordination: Luo Hui, Liu Hua, Wang Xuan
Vision | Editor: Yang Wenrong, Zhang Huihui
Produced by Xinhua News Agency
Produced by the first studio of Xinhua News Agency