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US-China relations
ChinaDiplomacy

US House delegation to visit China for first time in over 6 years

The trip could help stabilise ties but probably will not lead to an improvement in Sino-American relations, according to one analyst

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Democratic congressman Adam Smith will lead a delegation of American lawmakers to China later this month, Beijing has confirmed. Photo: AFP
Orange Wang

China has confirmed that a bipartisan group of lawmakers from the US House of Representatives will visit the country later this month for the first time in over six years.

“China welcomes Representative Adam Smith, ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, to lead a delegation to visit China,” Liu Pengyu, spokesman for the Chinese embassy in the US, said late on Tuesday.

“We also welcome more Americans from all walks of life, including members of Congress, to visit China and gain a real, multidimensional and comprehensive understanding of the country.
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“We stand ready to work with the US side to … enhance engagement, reduce misjudgments, manage differences and advance cooperation, so as to promote the stable, sound, and sustainable development of China-US relations.”

The planned trip, first reported by NBC News on Tuesday, is expected to happen later this month. However, the exact timing and agenda were not immediately clear.

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The delegation is being organised by Smith, a Democrat from Washington state. Both Democratic and Republican members of the House Armed Services Committee will take part. But the panel’s chairman, Mike Rogers, a Republican congressman from Alabama, reportedly will not be part of the delegation.
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