Foundation of Sino-US ties laid by people

This is an editorial from China Daily.

The foundation of the world's most important bilateral relations lies in the genuine connections between ordinary people.

People-to-people friendship has historically served as a pillar, stabilizer and bridge for China-US relations. More than eight decades later, the legacy of the Flying Tigers continues to resonate, as the deep friendship forged in blood and fire during World War II remains a powerful testament to what the two peoples can achieve together.

In 1971, it was not a formal diplomatic envoy but "ping-pong diplomacy" that helped to break the ice between the two nations, illustrating that a small ball could indeed move a large globe.

These historical events, along with others, underscore a fundamental truth: it is the grassroots connections that keep communication lines open and preserve mutual trust in times of uncertainties.

In the contemporary era, people-to-people exchanges serve as crucial counterweights against the tide of uncertainty again. Recent stories of people-to-people exchanges highlight this dynamic. The reunion of Chinese sand-control pioneer Yin Yuzhen and her US friend Ronald Sakolsky, whose donation in 1999 enabled her to plant tens of thousands of trees in the desert, illustrates how shared human values transcend borders.

Similarly, the lifelong devotion of 95-year-old David Plymire to Huangyuan county, Qinghai province — where he spent 17 years early in his life and donated medical equipment worth more than 6 million yuan ($896,000) out of a sense of duty to his "hometown" — shows that individual human connections can lead to lasting, tangible change.

As China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning noted on Tuesday, the small streams of exchanges and goodwill between the Chinese and US people have converged to form the vast river of friendship between the two countries.

The foundation of China-US relations lies among the people, the hope is in the people, the future lies in the youth, and the vitality lies in sub-national areas, President Xi Jinping once said. He has consistently championed people-to-people friendship between China and the US, seeking to bring the Chinese and Americans ever closer and rally stronger public support for the two countries to get along.

During his state visit to the US last month, Xi invited 100,000 young Americans to visit China for exchanges and study over the next five years.

When he visited the US in 2023, Xi invited 50,000 young Americans to China over five years for exchanges and study. The target has been reached in May ahead of schedule.

More firsthand experience and sincere face-to-face exchanges can deepen mutual understanding, dispel prejudices and help young Americans see a real China.

In his reply letter last month to students from 10 US universities who wrote to him after participating in youth exchanges in China, Xi expressed his hope that the students would join the vast number of young people in both countries in striving to carry forward, uphold and advance China-US friendly cooperation, and work together to foster mutual understanding and affinity between the two peoples and to ensure the steady and long-term development of bilateral relations, so as to contribute the vitality of youth to building a better world.

Recent surveys have shown that a growing number of people in the US now hold a comparatively positive view on China. Results from a Pew Research Center poll indicated that the percentage of US respondents expressing a positive view of China this year is almost double that of 2023.

This reflects a pragmatic realization among ordinary people that the two nations are deeply intertwined, and that shared prosperity is far more beneficial than zero-sum competition. By fostering cultural, educational and community-level interactions, China and the US can create better conditions to manage their differences.

Nurturing these interpersonal bonds should be recognized as a strategic necessity. As long as the two peoples continue to reach out to each other with sincerity and goodwill, they will help to steadily consolidate the foundation for translating the vision of a constructive China-US relationship of strategic stability based on respect, fairness and reciprocity into reality.