US Ambassador to China Terry Branstad extended a warm invitation to Chinese students to study in the United States in a signed article published by China Youth Daily on Monday.

This has been seized on as a ray of hope by those fearing the delay in signing of the "phase one" trade deal between China and the United States may lead to relations relapsing into acrimony.

It is certainly encouraging to see that, nearly one month after the US president said he gave Chinese students his word that "I want them coming here", the US administration, which is known for being somewhat capricious, is still holding true to those words.

Although the US State Department claims that the Chinese students are not being denied visas, the allegations that Chinese students and scholars are spies stealing US intelligence and technology had taken on McCarthyist overtones in the targeting of the Chinese community on US campuses, institutes and companies. Even the US president admitted his own security people had been making such claims to him.

Thus the article by Branstad not only seems to indicate the goodwill expressed in the US president's promise that the US "is going to be very good to Chinese students" is still alive and well, but also that the "phase one" agreement that elicited the pledge remains on the cards.

It is estimated that about half a million Chinese students are studying in the US at present, contributing about $20 billion to $30 billion to the US economy each year.

But aside from being a pick-me-up for the US economy, more importantly, Chinese students and scholars foster interpersonal relations that are crucial for the deepening of mutual understanding and mutual trust between the two peoples and the two countries, both of which are badly needed for Sino-US ties to weather the current harsh tests.

Even if the US has redefined China as being a rival, rather than a partner, as evident in recent speeches delivered by US Vice-President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, that should not be a reason to sever normal people-to-people exchanges, particularly among young people, who hold the future of the world's most important bilateral relations in their hands.

Returnees from the US have not only played important roles in boosting China's fast development over the past four decades, they have also promoted the two countries' ever greater engagement over that period.

As Branstad said, building a bridge between the two cultures is not easy, but it is worth the effort.

It is to be hoped that the US administration will bear that in mind when dealing with other issues concerning China.