WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A bipartisan group of lawmakers from the U.S. House of Representatives will make an official trip to China later this month, NBC News reported on Tuesday, citing comments from the lawmakers.
It would mark the first such official visit by members of the House of Representatives since 2019, NBC News reported.
The U.S. congressional delegation to China is being organized by U.S. Representative Adam Smith of Washington state, the former chair of the House Armed Services Committee and current top Democrat on the panel, NBC News reported, adding that Smith confirmed the trip to the media outlet on Tuesday.
Smith told NBC News that both Democratic and Republican members of the House Armed Services Committee would participate in the trip, but its chair, Republican U.S. Representative Mike Rogers, would not be a part of the delegation.
Smith’s office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
The trip will take place during strained ties between Washington and Beijing over issues like trade tariffs, technology, cybersecurity, the ownership of TikTok and policies related to Hong Kong and Taiwan.
“I think it’s fairly significant. It’s part of wanting to try to open up a dialogue between the U.S. and China. And I personally think it’s important that you do that,” Smith told NBC in an interview.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Ryan Patrick Jones and Lisa Shumaker)
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