U.S. should do more to facilitate people-to-people exchanges with China, says Wang Yi

The United States should provide more support and convenience for people-to-people exchanges with China, said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Tuesday.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks during a meeting with Evan Greenberg, chair of the National Committee on United States-China Relations (NCUSCR), and Stephen Orlins, president of the NCUSCR, in Beijing.

Wang expressed hope that the NCUSCR would continue to play a constructive role in promoting exchanges between the two peoples and advancing the sound and stable development of China-U.S. relations.

Chinese President Xi Jinping reviewed the history of exchanges between China and the U.S. at a welcome dinner hosted by the committee and other U.S. organizations in San Francisco last November.

The hope of the China-U.S. relationship lies in the people. Its foundation is in the societies; its future depends on the youth, and its vitality comes from exchanges at subnational levels, said Xi at the dinner.

President Xi also announced that China is ready to invite 50,000 young Americans to China on exchange and study programs in the next five years.

The Chinese president's trip to San Francisco was a great success, setting a new tone and direction for the relations between the two countries, according to Greenberg and Orlins.

They also said the program engaging young Americans is very popular.

During Tuesday's meeting, Wang said the U.S. sees China as its main strategic competitor and most consequential geopolitical challenge, which is at the crux of China-U.S. relations.

He said such misperceptions have continued to cause problems in the relationship and have made it impossible to translate commitments made by U.S. leaders into actions.

That is not in the interest of the two peoples, neither in line with the expectations of the international community nor the trend of historical development, added Wang.

According to Greenberg and Orlins, the U.S.-China relationship is one of the most important bilateral relations in the world, and maintaining communication and engagement to ensure the relationship moves in a constructive direction will benefit the entire world.

The U.S.-China relationship started with engagement, which does not mean compromise but is the only way for the sound and correct development of relations between the two countries, they said.

The NCUSCR is ready to continue to play an active role in promoting exchanges between the two countries, they added.