Xi Jinping announced: Inviting 100,000 American teenagers to come to China for exchange and study in the next five years

Xinhua News Agency, Washington, September 24th: "The hope of China-US relations lies in the people and the future lies in the youth. Here, I would like to announce that in the next five years, China will invite 100,000 American teenagers to come to China for exchange and study." President Xi Jinping, who is on a state visit to the United States, said in a speech at the White House welcome ceremony on the 24th.

On the morning of September 24, local time, U.S. President Trump held a grand ceremony at the White House to warmly welcome Chinese President Xi Jinping for his state visit to the United States. This is Xi Jinping’s speech.

This is another new invitation issued by President Xi Jinping to American teenagers after announcing in San Francisco in November 2023 the initiative of "inviting 50,000 American teenagers to come to China for exchange and study in the next five years."

"This is a great move!" Luca Veron, an old friend of President Xi Jinping in Iowa, said in an interview with a reporter from Xinhua News Agency. "When I learned about this new initiative of '100,000 in five years', I can't express my excitement."

Bellon has long been engaged in the cause of Sino-US people-to-people friendship. "The '50,000 in 5 Years' initiative is one of the most far-reaching measures focusing on the future of U.S.-China relations. Now President Xi Jinping has once again played a leading role in promoting people-to-people and cultural exchanges between the two countries," he said.

After the "50,000 in 5 years" initiative was put forward, it received enthusiastic response from all walks of life in China and the United States. In just over two years, the goal was achieved ahead of schedule. More than 50,000 American teenagers from all 50 states and Washington, D.C., set foot on the land of China. From middle school students to college students to young scholars, groups of American young people have entered classrooms, families, and mountains and rivers to communicate and learn from their Chinese peers, and to experience the real China while walking. "When in China, the taste, touch, smell and sights of China together form a beautiful picture." "What I want to share with more people is not just photos, but also real experiences, new Chinese friends and changes in perspective on the world." Some American teenagers who participated in the initiative shared their feelings about visiting China.

Bai Lijuan, vice president of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, said that the "50,000 in 5 Years" initiative has achieved its goal in such a short period of time, and the results are "amazing", indicating that there is a strong inherent need for youth exchanges between the two countries.

"Youth are the most energetic and full of dreams. They are the future and hope of China-US relations and the future and hope of the world." President Xi Jinping once said in a reply letter to Chinese and American students participating in exchange activities in China.

This new youth invitation will create more opportunities for young people from the two countries to learn from each other and build more bridges of mutual understanding and friendship.

Since 2023, young people from both sides of the ocean have taken the same class, sang the same song, and traveled together. "We have common hobbies and similar dreams" "We ask each other questions and laugh together"... The youths of the two countries had in-depth exchanges during their time together, deepened their understanding of each other, opened up a long-term friendship, and wrote a new story of friendship between the two peoples.

Grace Biju, a junior at Central Michigan University, just returned from a trip to China. She said she expected more people to join President Xi Jinping’s new initiative of “100,000 in 5 years” and “go to China to become ambassadors of friendship across the Pacific.”

This new youth invitation will help more American teenagers understand a true, three-dimensional and comprehensive China.

"A hundred hearings are worth a sight." During their stay in China, batches of American teenagers observed China with their own eyes, listened to China with their own ears, and felt the breadth and depth of Chinese culture; they experienced the fireworks of China's urban and rural areas in the streets and alleys and every meal; they understood the profound meaning of friendship "forged by blood and fire" from the stories of China and the United States fighting side by side; they felt the vigorous pulse of development on the speeding high-speed rail and from the advanced intelligent production lines...

Chen Kangqi, a Harvard University teacher who has long been committed to Sino-US educational exchanges and cross-cultural education practices, told Xinhua News Agency that President Xi Jinping announced the new initiative of “100,000 in five years” during his visit to the United States. Its significance is not only to further expand the scope of exchanges, but also to give more young Americans the opportunity to observe and experience China in person. "I look forward to more opportunities for young people from both countries to learn together and work together to find answers to common problems facing mankind."

From the "50,000 in 5 years" initiative to the "100,000 in 5 years" initiative, from "Table Tennis Love" to pickleball friends, from "Guling Fate" to "Music Unbounded Youth Date", the platform for exchanges between Chinese and American youths continues to expand, with increasingly diverse forms and expanding scale. "No matter how the situation changes, the desire of the people of China and the United States for exchanges and cooperation will not change, and the friendship between the youths of the two countries will not change." President Xi Jinping emphasized.

The foundation of China-US relations is laid by the people, and the future is created by young people. The "100,000 in 5 years" initiative will become a new starting point for youth exchanges and people-to-people friendship between the two countries. The youthful force across the Pacific is injecting vitality and vitality into creating a bright future for Sino-US relations with an unstoppable momentum.