A bipartisan group of House lawmakers announced on Tuesday that they will visit China for the first time since 2019.
The U.S. congressional delegation to China is organized by Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), according to NBC News, which first reported the trip.
Smith is the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL), the committee’s chairman, will not be a part of the delegation.
“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 the outlet.
“Merely talking with China is not endorsing everything that they do. It’s like China is a big, powerful country. We are a big, powerful country. I think we need to talk about that,” he continued. “So there’s no significance in the timing.
