Then Iowa Governor Terry Branstad testifies before a Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing on his nomination to be US ambassador to China at Capitol Hill in Washington DC, US on May 2, 2017. [Photo/Agencies]

The ambassador is bringing his family. "My wife, daughter, son-in-law and two granddaughters will join me in Beijing, and I look forward to introducing them to the warmth and extraordinary culture of the Chinese people," he said.

Branstad said he will also travel across China to visit old friends and make new ones.

Dong Manyuan, vice-president of the China Institute of International Studies, said Branstad's arrival in China is coming at a good time.

"The presidents of the two countries have reached consensus on guidelines for improving bilateral relations, and their personal exchanges have gone smoothly," he said.

"That has laid a good foundation for the work of the ambassador, who is a friend of both presidents."

The embassy has been without an ambassador since Branstad's predecessor ambassador Max Baucus left China on Jan 16 and stepped down on Jan 20.

Branstad was sworn in as ambassador on May 24. Before that, he was serving his sixth term as Iowa's governor, making him the United States' longest-serving governor.

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