U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo will visit China next week at the invitation of her Chinese counterpart to discuss the economic relationship between the two powerhouses, as Beijing tries to convince Washington to relax economic restrictions.
Raimondo will meet senior Chinese officials, including her counterpart, Wang Wentao, as well as U.S. business leaders in Shanghai and Beijing from Sunday through Wednesday. Her trip comes after several high profile visits this summer by U.S. Cabinet officials, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Treasury chief Janet Yellen and climate envoy John Kerry.
The commerce secretary decided to go forward with the visit despite reports that her department’s emails had been accessed by Chinese-based hackers.