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Chinese President Xi Jinping (3rd R) and his wife Peng Liyuan (2nd R) pose for a group picture with U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama (3rd L), Michelle's mother Marian Robinson (2nd L), Michelle's daughters Malia (1st R) and Sasha (1st L) during their meeting in Beijing, capital of China, March 21, 2014. [Xinhua]

The visit by Michelle Obama and her daughters and mother to China is important for many reasons.

First, it signals the importance of the China relationship to the United States. It is also important that the American visitors have shown an interest in Chinese culture and have even used some Chinese language. Clearly, there is a growing interest in Chinese history and culture. Moreover, as the rest of the world begins to understand more about China and China about other cultures, this is an important step in deepening the relationship between countries and developing closer ties across other fronts.

The fact that Mrs Obama has been focusing on education and culture is also a nice recognition that relationships between countries are not only about economics and trade, but also about the exchange of other aspects of life, which things are powerful in giving each country a deeper understanding of and empathy toward one another. This in turn creates a stepping stone to other forms of exchange and cooperation which will be to the benefit of China and the United States and the wider global community.

It is also symbolic that both first ladies, Michelle Obama and Peng Liyuan, are great talents in their own right. Both have risen from humble beginnings to achieve prominent success and both are deeply involved in advocating and supporting important causes in their respective countries as well as serving as wonderful ambassadors for their respective countries.

The wide media coverage of such visits will also encourage more Americans to visit China and for Chinese citizens to visit the United States.

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