Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo is looking to boost American tourism to China, even as the State Department warns against visits to the People’s Republic.
On Tuesday, Raimondo met with Chinese Minister of Culture and Tourism Hu Heping to discuss how the two countries can revive mutual tourism, according to a Department of Commerce press release. The State Department currently advises Americans to “reconsider” travel to mainland China over concerns that tourists may be detained. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Doug Burgum PAC Vows He ‘Will Win Cold War With China’ In National Ad)
“Secretary Raimondo also noted the positive efforts made by the Department of Commerce and Ministry of Culture and Tourism to restore the United States as an approved destination for Chinese group travel, which will create jobs and grow the economies of both countries, and foster better understanding between the people and cultures of the two nations,” according to the Department of Commerce press release.
“In the meeting, Secretary Raimondo and Minister Hu agreed to hold the 14th China-U.S. Tourism Leadership Summit in China in the first half of 2024, aiming to further revive and develop tourism cooperation between the two countries,” the press release continued.
Amid rising tensions with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), several Biden administration officials have made trips to China throughout the summer. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken visited the foreign country in June to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Central Foreign Affairs Office Director Wang Yi and Foreign Minister Qin Gang. Blinken aimed to open a line of military-to-military direct communication for crisis situations, but the CCP declined the offer.
US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo (L) meets with Chinese Minister of Culture and Tourism Hu Heping before their meeting at the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in Beijing on August 29, 2023. (Photo by Andy Wong / POOL / AFP) (Photo by ANDY WONG/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen took a trip to Beijing in July in an effort to ease economic and political tensions between the U.S. and the CCP. Yellen made the visit shortly after China enacted new restrictions on trade imports from the U.S., exacerbating to the long-standing trade war between the two countries.
“We believe that the world is big enough for both of us. China and the United States can and needs to find a way to live together and share in global prosperity. We can acknowledge our differences, defend our own interests, and compete fairly,” Yellen previously said in April of the rising tensions between the two countries.