Former Iowa Governor Terry Branstad recently spoke at a Jefferson Rotary Club meeting and he spent some time recounting his relationship with the Chinese president.

Branstad told Raccoon Valley Radio his partnership with President Xi Jinping started early in his governorship in the 1980s, when he was the first American governor to host Jinping as a then county-level party leader. Through the years, Branstad kept his relationship with Jinping until he was appointed by former President Donald Trump as U.S. Ambassador to China on May 23, 2017. He described one of his highlights when he served as ambassador.

“I’m proud to say that I played a key role in developing the Phase I trade agreement. That’s led to record purchases of corn, soybeans and pork. And now the Chinese are even purchasing some American beef and chicken which they haven’t done for years. So that’s been one of the significant accomplishments of the Trump Administration.”   

Branstad said he also dealt with the very beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic that stemmed from Wuhan, made the prescription drug fentanyl that came from China a controlled substance and worked with China to stop the nuclear threat from North Korea. Branstad served as U.S. Ambassador for over three years, which he said is longer than the previous three individuals in the same position.