BEIJING, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has replied to a letter from a U.S. youth education exchange delegation comprised of teachers and students from the Diamond Minds Transformational Leadership Academy in Miami, Florida, the University of Florida and the Miami-Dade College.

In the reply letter dated Jan. 7, Xi said he was pleased to learn that the teachers and students had a pleasant and rewarding journey in China, and felt their strong interest and sincere feelings for Chinese culture.

Noting that the hope of China-U.S. relations lies in the people, and its future relies on the youth, Xi said since the launch of the "50,000 in Five Years" initiative, over 40,000 U.S. youth have actively participated, opening a window for them to understand the real China and building a bridge to carry forward the friendship between the two peoples.

This fully demonstrates that fostering friendly exchanges and cooperation is the shared aspiration of the people of both China and the United States, he said.

Xi said he looks forward to more American youth joining the cause of China-U.S. friendship, becoming a new generation of envoys of friendship between the two countries, and making greater contributions to enhancing people-to-people exchanges and promoting the development of bilateral relations.

The teachers and students of the U.S. delegation wrote a letter to Xi recently, reviewing their visit to China in October 2025 and expressing gratitude for the "50,000 in Five Years" initiative proposed by Xi, which has provided a valuable opportunity to enhance mutual understanding between youth of the two countries. ■