On February 24, Consul General Gao Yanping attended a reception held for her by former Texas Secretary of State Geoffrey Connor. About 50 dignitaries, including Vice Consul Sun Nǚzun and Aaron Demerson, Executive Director of the Texas Economic Development & Tourism Department, James Chen, Regional Director of the Governor's office, Ben Ramirez, International Program Manager of the Economic Growth and Redevelopment Service Office of the City of Austin, Officials of the U.S. Department of State, Austin Office etc. were present.

Consul General Gao expressed her thanks to Mr. Connor for holding this special event for her and extended her greetings of the Chinese New Year to all the participants. She said that she values the friendship and cooperation with her American friends in all fields. China and the United States share common interests. The promotion of exchanges and cooperation between the two sides will bring tangible benefits to the two peoples. Consul General Gao delivered a keynote speech on China's latest economic situation, 2010 Shanghai World EXPO and China-U.S. relations.

On the reception, Consul General Gao and her staff exchanged views with American friends on topics of common concern, such as China-U.S. relations, U.S. economy, China-U.S. economic and trade cooperation and U.S. midterm election etc. Many U.S. friends recalled their happy memories about visiting China. They valued the U.S.-China relationship and expressed their willingness to strengthen the China-U.S. exchanges and cooperation.