Bipartisan group of lawmakers to visit China for first time since 2019: Report

A bipartisan group of House lawmakers is expected to visit China later this month, marking the first official congressional visit to the country since 2019, NBC News reported Tuesday.

Details of the trip, such as the date of the visit or which lawmakers will be on it, were not immediately clear, but it is being organized by Democratic Washington Rep. Adam Smith. Smith is the top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee.

“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."

Smith said that he believes more trips to China should be planned as a way to open dialogue between the countries. He also said the trip will include a visit to Cambodia but not Taiwan.

"My important message is, you know, we have to have dialogue and communication," Smith said. "I am deeply worried that, yes, China is a major rising power that we seem to be talking less and less to. We need to figure out a way to resolve our differences, and can't do it by not talking to each other." 

The lawmaker added that he is working to arrange a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping but that no meeting has been scheduled so far. 

The trip marks the first time that House lawmakers will hold an official visit to China since 2019 when Reps. Rick Larsen of Washington, a Democrat, and Darin LaHood of Illinois, a Republican, conducted a trip as part of U.S.-China Working Group. 

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer took a team of senators to China in 2023. 

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.