A delegation of six U.S. mayors representing communities along the Mississippi River Basin arrived in Wuhan on October 31 in the first such visit since the pandemic. The delegation included Mayor Jim Brainard of Carmel, Indiana; Mayor Barbara Buffaloe of Columbia, Missouri; Mayor Lee Harris of Shelby County, Tennessee; Mayor Chokwe Lumumba of Jackson, Mississippi; Mayor Kim Norton of Rochester, Minnesota; and Mayor Robyn Tannehill of Oxford, Mississippi.

Group photo of Hubei and U.S. heartland mayors

During the two-day trip, the delegates were greeted by the Vice Governor of Hubei as well as eight local mayors at the Hubei-Middle America Mayors Roundtable. This visit also included a field trip to Voyah Automobile, where the mayors tested the latest lineup of its EVs, a stop at Wuhan University to engage with students, and a nighttime visit to Wuhan’s landmark Yellow Crane Tower.

Vice Governor Wu Haitao meets with U.S. heartland mayors

Wu warmly welcomed the visiting delegation and said that as President Xi Jinping noted during his meeting with Governor Gavin Newsom that the hope of the China-U.S. relationship lies in the people, its foundation is in our societies, its future depends on the youth, and its vitality comes from exchanges at subnational levels. The two sides should further strengthen practical cooperation and bring subnational relations to a new height.

Hubei-Middle America Mayors Roundtable

One-on-one networking session between mayors

The U.S. Mayors and their Chinese counterparts shared highlights of their respective cities in a roundtable, followed by an in-depth discussion on opportunities for collaboration.

Signing ceremony

The roundtable culminated in the signing of sister city agreement between the city of Carmel, Indiana and Xiangyang, Hubei, the newest pair of sister cities between the United States and China. The two sides reached consensus on deepening cooperation in fields such as science & technology, culture, sports, health, and education on the basis of equality and mutual benefit.