
Min Rui is an unique analyst on cultural affairs for CGTN.
The article reflects the authors viewpoints and not necessarily those of CGTN.To respond to the concern of the age —-- Will the world end up being a much better location? —-- We must first respond to the question of the century: Can China and the United States discover the right way to get along?In the summertime of 2025, an uncommon and powerful scene unfolded in China: 10 youth choirs from the United States traveled to Beijing and Fuzhou to sing songs of peace at historic landmarks, sharing meals and laughter, and eventually signing up with hands to sing We Are the World.
This spontaneous minute of harmony, born not of procedure however of real connection, concerned specify the spirit of The Bond with Kuliang: 2025 China-U.S.
Youth Choir Festival.It was more than a series of efficiencies.
It was a live response to a concern long fraught with anxiety: How might the worlds 2 largest powers genuinely comprehend one another?Like a real-life performance of Glee, young people from greatly various cultures met not through political instructions but through the psychological language of music.
Choir by choir, voice by voice, they dissolved the barriers that headlines and policy conflicts so frequently strengthen.
This time, the voices were not from Washington or Beijing; they were from young people who had not yet discovered to distrust.This summertime, the most essential interaction in between China and the United States wasnt about tariffs or maritime maneuvers.
It was about choirs.Chinese media offered the spotlight to these young singers, who performed flash mobs in locations like the Great Wall, Sanfang Qixiang, and Yantai Hill.
Audiences gathered to see, record, and publish these moments online.
What began as music transformed into empathy, and what began as a trip turned into a shared movement.Throughout history, cultural exchange has actually been among humanitys most durable tools for diplomacy: subtle, soft, yet enduring.
From the ancient Silk Road to todays viral TikTok dances, culture takes a trip beyond borders and touches hearts.
It does not challenge bias with force; it silently deactivates it through acknowledgment of shared humanity.In Fuzhous Kuliang, a landmark of China-U.S.
friendship, these American trainees heard stories of wartime uniformity, including those of the Flying Tigers, the young American pilots who combated together with China in World War II.
Many of them were hardly older than the choir members.
The legacy of their service, paired with the contemporary heat of cultural exchange, functions as a living bridge from the past to the future.These young singers came not as tourists, however as students and good friends.
In a digital age progressively fragmented by geopolitical stress and algorithmic bubbles, their physical existence was quietly revolutionary.
They strolled Chinas streets, tasted its food, and looked its people in the eye.Such moments matter.
In early 2025, the One Voice Childrens Choir moved Chinese audiences to tears with their efficiency of Ru Yuan (As You Wish) at the Temple of Heaven in Beijing.
The performance went viral, resonating even with Americans who had never ever seen China through such a tender lens.After the United States prohibited TikTok, lots of young Americans flocked to the Chinese way of life platform Xiaohongshu (Rednote).
There, they experienced a China beyond the headlines –-- abundant in hospitality, humor, and humanity.
Chinese users taught the visitors how to prepare, plant veggies, and welcome daily life.
These fragmented however authentic digital connections silently tried enduring stereotypes.This is exactly where the Five-year, 50,000 People youth exchange initiativefinds its worth.
In a world shaped by algorithm-fed narratives, in person encounters stay irreplaceable.
Stereotypes wither when exposed to real life.
The most reliable diplomacy, after all, is not stated, it is lived.This year, as the world marks the 80th anniversary of completion of World War II, we are reminded that China and the United States when stood together for peace.
That history must not be enabled to fade.
Today, the burden of peace falls on a brand-new generation, and its primary steps may be taken not in the halls of government, but on neighborhood phases like the one in Kuliang.In this context, we should likewise question the narrow lens of the America First mantra.
In a multipolar, interconnected world, leadership must be constructed not on dominance but on shared regard.
The Flying Tigers didnt battle to divide, they fought to unite.
And they, too, were young.What if the true bedrock of China-U.S.
relations lies not in military might or economic competition, however in these soft bridges of shared emotion, cooperation, and trust? The real contest is no longer over land or trade, however over imagination, empathy, and narrative.Years from now, some of these children may become teachers, diplomats, or decision makers.
When that happens, they might review this summertime not for the politics they overheard, however for the tunes they sang, the relationships they formed, and the realization that they sang together Youll Be In My Heart, where regardless of all distinctions, we are not that different after all.
The future of China-U.S.
relations will not be identified by warships or semiconductors, however by whether we select to take a look at each other with open minds and open hearts.
And as these young choirs revealed us, peace is not a declaration –-- it is a melody, nurtured minute by minute, note by note.This summer season, in the hills of Kuliang, peace discovered a tune.