U.S. first lady Michelle Obama and her family are arriving later today here in Beijing to start a visit to China as the guest of Peng Liyuan, the wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Some observers are anticipating the visit may help smooth bilateral relations.

The White House announced on Monday that the trip will be focusing on the power and importance of education. Michelle will also visit some important historical and cultural sites in China, as well as making two separate speeches at Peking University and a Middle school in Chengdu.

A senior official with the White House says agenda-setting of the visit is emphasizing the importance of people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.

"That's critically important given that our role in what gonna play in the 21st century is that again we maintain the very regular context that we had at the leader to leader level, but that we are also reaching out in building relationship with people, particularly young people."

Tao Wenzhao, Deputy Director of the Institute of American Studies with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, says it is the first time a foreign country's first lady is paying an official visit to China alone. He says, though a first lady does not have any formal position in the government, but everybody understands the role she can play.

"And now people are just watching what Michelle Obama will say before she leaves and what kind of exchanges or interactions will take place between Michelle Obama and Madam Peng Liyuan."

During the past few months, relations between the two countries have seen friction when it comes to territorial disputes between China and some of America's allies in the Asian Pacific region, including Japan and the Philippines.

Professor Shi Yinghong with Renmin University of China, believes, though Michelle's visit will not touch upon hot-button political issues, it can help improve and strengthen Sino-U.S. relations.

Tao echoes this point, but he also suggests that people should bare in mind the common interests of the two sides.

"Yes, differences do exist in this or that aspect, over human rights, and over the South China Sea, East China Sea etc. But those disputes do not mean that our relationship is bad. Actually, this is a quite normal collation of Sino-U.S. relations. In general, our common interests are much larger than our differences."

Instead of having political intentions, Tao adds Michelle Obama's visit is more likely making up for the two first ladies failing to meet in June in California due to a scheduling conflict.

(CRIENGLISH.com March 20, 2014)