On June 30, 2023, Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu met with members of "Kuliang Friends" from the United States and a friendly delegation from the Iowa state who are in China for the "Bond with Kuliang: 2023 China-U.S. People-to-People Friendship Forum".

Ma Zhaoxu said that President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory letter to the "Bond with Kuliang: 2023 China-U.S. People-to-People Friendship Forum", pointing out that amity between people holds the key to sound relations between countries, and people are the cornerstone of the growth of state-to-state relations. President Xi's remarks have shown a clear direction for promoting friendship between Chinese and American peoples. Ma Zhaoxu expressed the hope that all friends will delve into and carry forward the Kuliang friendship and Iowa story, and write more such stories in the new era, thus contributing to increasing mutual understanding between China and the United States and deepening friendship between the two peoples.

The "friends of Kuliang" and the "old friends" from Iowa shared their experiences of friendly exchanges with China, and said that only by personally visiting China will one know China as it is. In the future, they will actively promote the Kuliang culture, tell stories of friendly exchanges between China and the Iowa state, and play a positive role in promoting the U.S.-China friendship.