Xi sends Chinese New Year card in return to friends in US state of Iowa

BEIJING -- President Xi Jinping on Monday sent a Chinese New Year card in return to friends in the US state of Iowa, saying that China and the United States share extensive common interests and broad space for cooperation and can become partners and friends.

Xi said in the reply card that the warm reception he received when he visited the beautiful state of Iowa 40 years ago is still fresh in his memory.

China and the United States can achieve mutual success and common prosperity for the benefit of both countries and the world at large, Xi said.

The Chinese president expressed his hope that the two peoples will pay more visits to each other and have more exchanges, jointly write new stories of friendship between the two peoples, and make new contributions to the development of China-US relations.

Earlier, 58 people from Iowa, including friends Luca Berrone, Gary Dvorchak and Sarah Lande, former US Ambassador to China Terry Branstad and his wife, former President of the World Food Prize Foundation Kenneth Quinn, as well as representatives of teachers, students and parents from Iowa who participated in the initiative of inviting 50,000 young Americans to China for exchange and study for a five-year period, jointly sent a Chinese New Year card to President Xi.

In the card, they recalled Xi's first visit to Iowa in 1985 and extended New Year greetings to President Xi in the Year of the Snake.

The representatives of teachers, students and parents thanked Xi for putting forward the "50,000 in Five Years" initiative, shared their feelings about visiting China, and expressed their expectations to visit China again.