The celebrations marking the 30th anniversary of sister state/province relationship between Hebei and Iowa were held from Oct. 20 to 22 at Muscatine, and capital city Des Moines of Iowa. Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a message of congratulation to the celebrations. President Xi expresses warm congratulations to the 30th anniversary celebrations, and extends heartfelt thanks and best wishes to people from various sectors of the two countries who have long cared for and supported China-US subnational exchanges and the growth of the overall bilateral relations. President Xi says that subnational exchanges and cooperation are an important driver behind the growth of China-US relations. We are ready to work together with the United States to deepen existing sister state/province and city relationships and give play to the role of such mechanisms as China-US governors forum, China-US city economic cooperation conference and China-US mayors summit, so as to deepen and consolidate subnational exchanges and cooperation between the two countries.

The participants at the celebrations included Mr. Zhou Benshun, Party Secretary of CPC Hebei Provincial Committee, and Hebei delegation, CPAFFC Vice President Xie Yuan, Chinese Consul General at Chicago Zhao Weiping, Iowa Governor Terry Branstad, Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds, Mrs. Sarah Lande and Mr. Luca Berrone who are the co-chair of the 30th anniversary celebrations committee, and others. The two sides discussed cooperation in the fields of economy, science and technology, education, and people-to-people exchanges. 

Mayor DeWayne Hopkins of Muscatine hosted a welcome dinner for the Chinese delegation in the evening of Oct. 20. During the event, CPAFFC Vice President Xie Yuan conferred the honorary title of “Friendship Ambassador” to Mrs. Sarah Lande, to honor her efforts and contribution to the people-to-people exchanges and friendship between China and the US. From 1986 to 1998, Mrs. Lande was the president and executive director of Iowa Sister States Committee. During this period she led many delegations to China, contributed lots of energy and made concrete efforts to develop friendly relations between Iowa and China, especially with Hebei province.

In addition, Vice President Xie Yuan attended the Conference on Strategic Cooperation between Iowa and Hebei, and paid visits to the Kimberley Farm, Kent corporation, Drake University, Hy-Line corporation and other institutions. Youth representatives from the two countries joined voices to sing the China-US friendship song “Lasting Memory” in Chinese language. The song was initiated by the two countries, written by CPAFFC and composed by the famous composer Professor Du Mingxin. It shows the affectionate feelings between Chinese and American people.