Ahead of Trump's Arrival, US Senator Visits Beijing

Beijing (ANTARA) - A United States senator from the Republican Party and member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Steve Daines, led a bipartisan congressional delegation comprising five senators on a visit to China on Thursday.

The visit comes less than two weeks before the scheduled arrival of US President Donald Trump on 14-15 May, where he will meet with President Xi Jinping.

“This visit is the first bipartisan congressional delegation from the United States to visit China since President Trump took office, thus holding important symbolic significance,” said Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his meeting with Daines.

According to a written statement on the website of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, accessed by ANTARA in Beijing on Thursday, the delegation consists of Steve Daines (Republican, Montana), Maria Cantwell (Democrat, Washington), Deb Fischer (Republican, Nebraska), Mike Lee (Republican, Utah), and Jerry Moran (Republican, Kansas).

In addition to Beijing, the delegation will also visit various technology companies in Shanghai and meet with Chinese officials.

“We hope they can experience the new atmosphere of China’s development through this visit, build new bridges of communication, discuss new areas of cooperation, and add momentum to the stable, healthy, and sustainable development of China-US relations,” Wang Yi added.

Wang Yi stated that China-US relations concern the well-being of the people of both countries and affect the stability of the world order.

“China’s policy towards the US remains consistent. The two countries should take mutual respect and peaceful coexistence as principles, and mutual benefit and win-win cooperation as goals, thereby contributing to world peace and stability,” Wang Yi explained.

Wang Yi also noted that over the past more than a year, President Xi Jinping and President Donald Trump have held several telephone conversations and in-person meetings to steer the direction of bilateral relations.

“China is willing to work with the US to implement well the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, so that China-US relations can truly stabilise and improve, benefiting both countries and the world,” Wang Yi clarified.

According to Wang Yi, the key to good relations between China and the US is to resolve differences in perceptions and correctly fasten the “first button” of bilateral relations.

“The social systems and development paths of China and the US differ, but both are rooted in their respective historical and cultural accumulations and are choices of their respective peoples. The two can grow together without harming each other,” Wang Yi stressed.

He further assessed that it is only natural for China and the US to seek “harmony in differences” and to be partners rather than adversaries.

“China will not pursue the notion that a strong country must seek hegemony, but will continue to adhere to peaceful development and steadfastly follow the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics,” Wang Yi stated.

China also hopes that the US will view China objectively, build a rational perception of China, genuinely respect China’s core interests, manage differences well, and join hands to accomplish more major initiatives that benefit both countries and the world.

Meanwhile, the US senators shared their impressions of their visit to China and their views on the development of US-China relations.

Both sides also exchanged views on international and regional issues of common concern.

On his official website, Steve Daines stated that the US needs to understand China’s innovation ecosystem to compete effectively with China.

“That’s why I’m pleased to be here with my colleagues. With the US and China accounting for 40 percent of the global economy, engaging with the Chinese side is crucial for maintaining US global competitiveness,” Daines said.

This visit is Daines’ seventh trip to China since being elected to Congress. His most recent visit was on 23 March 2025, when he met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Beijing.

During his 2025 visit, Daines came with leaders of major US companies from various sectors, such as Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, FedEx CEO Raj Subramaniam, Cargill CEO Brian Sikes, and Boeing Senior Vice President Global Brendan Nelson.

Before entering politics, Daines had experience leading the US company Procter & Gamble for 13 years in management positions, with the last six years in China to launch American brands to compete with Chinese companies.