Since its launch in November 2023, the initiative — which aimed to bring 50,000 young Americans to China over five years — has already met its target, two and a half years ahead of schedule, Xi said in the letter.
"The story of China-US friendship is written by the people, and the future of China-U.S. relations is shaped by the youth."
On May 23, 2026, President Xi Jinping replied to a letter from Chinese and US students participating in "A Shared Voyage: China-US Youth Friendship Program". Since its launch in November 2023, the initiative — which aimed to bring 50,000 young Americans to China over five years — has already met its target, two and a half years ahead of schedule, Xi said in the letter.
An increasing number of young Americans are stepping into Chinese campuses. Through ongoing meetings, exchanges and conversations with their Chinese peers, they are reducing misunderstandings and deepening mutual understanding.
In May, a student delegation from Southern Utah University visited China for an exchange program. Cedar City, where the university is located, is also the hometown of journalist Helen Foster Snow, an author and activist who built a bridge of friendship between the US and China, starting in the 1930s. Through in-class studies and various cultural field trips, the American students experienced firsthand the profound heritage of Chinese civilisation and the openness and vitality of contemporary China.
