Following the meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden in San Francisco, local officials from the United States have echoed Xi's calls — holding subnational exchanges and people-to-people exchanges in high regard.

"Cross-border business relationship is really rooted in the diaspora — you need people who can navigate both sides of that relationship. … People-to-people connection is important, and I think we need more Americans engaging in China," said Samir Mayekar, Chicago's former deputy mayor of economic development.

"While there might be heightened tension at the federal level,… there's no doubt that at the provincial level and city level, …you care deeply about that dynamic and doing business together. And oftentimes, those are the people who can make this happen," he said.

Mayekar made the remarks during the 2023 annual gala of the China General Chamber of Commerce-USA Chicago (CGCC-Chicago), held on Monday under the theme of "Let's Move Forward".

Mayekar also held a positive attitude toward the business investment environment in China.

"When we were on the ground, we felt very welcomed. The reality is there's still $700 billion of cross-border trading happening," he said.

"I think over 70 percent of American CEOs are not looking to change their footprint in China right now, and are really committed to that relationship. …There's just this hunger to be doing more business together."

High regard

Similarly, Max Baucus, the former US ambassador to China, expressed high regard for people-to-people exchanges and believed that they would contribute to better mutual understanding between the two nations.

"It's that Americans just don't know China very well. Virtually no Americans speak Mandarin. And they don't travel. We tend to be kind of comfortable as Americans, not inclined to travel. We're very busy, it's hard for people to get up and travel to another country, but clearly if more Americans were to go to China, see China, they'd be astounded by what they see," Baucus told reporters on the sidelines of the gala.

Ryana Parks-Shaw, mayor pro tem of Kansas City, Missouri, said that subnational exchanges are important in terms of "building the people-to-people relationships, and building friendships".

Pat Quinn recalled his time when he was lieutenant governor of Illinois — a Chinese ping-pong team came from China to Illinois to celebrate the achievements of ping-pong diplomacy.

"I was really honored to meet such great players and that using sports and ping-pong that we both like, it was a good way to break the ice and get to know each other better."