Chinese vice president meets with founder of Schultz Family Foundation

Chinese Vice President Han Zheng meets with Howard Schultz, founder of the Schultz Family Foundation and Starbucks' former chief executive officer, in Beijing, capital of China, April 25, 2023. (Xinhua/Yao Dawei)

BEIJING, April 25 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice President Han Zheng met on Tuesday with Howard Schultz, founder of the Schultz Family Foundation and Starbucks' former chief executive officer, in Beijing.

Han said that, in January 2021, Chinese President Xi Jinping replied to a letter from Schultz, encouraging him and the coffee company to continue to play a positive role in advancing China-U.S. economic and trade cooperation and bilateral ties, and expressing earnest hopes in this regard.

Noting that China will not change its basic state policy of opening-up, Han said China is ready to share with companies from the United States and other countries the new opportunities brought by China's new development.

"We welcome Mr. Schultz and the Foundation to continue to actively participate in China's economic development and reform and opening-up process, and to make new contributions to the development of bilateral relations," Han said.

Schultz congratulated China on a series of historic achievements in developing the economy and improving people's livelihoods.

He expressed his willingness to give full play to the influence of the Schultz Family Foundation and Starbucks to promote more fruitful economic, trade, cultural and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.