Israel war: Schumer and lawmakers cut China trip short over violence in Israel

Senate Majority Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and a bipartisan congressional delegation will be departing China early due to the events unfolding in Israel and will return to the United States on Thursday.

“Following very productive meetings in China — including with President Xi — and in light of the tragic events unfolding in Israel, the bipartisan members of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s congressional delegation are moving up their meeting with South Korean President Yoon to Wednesday and will return to the U.S. on Thursday,” a Schumer spokeswoman said in a statement. “Leader Schumer will be back in New York Thursday evening.”

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The Israel Defense Forces launched significant and overwhelming airstrikes across Gaza in response to the unprecedented terrorist attacks over the weekend that left more than 900 Israelis dead and thousands wounded.

Schumer is leading a delegation of six senators, three Democrats and three Republicans, to China for talks that seek to advance America’s economic and national security interests. This all comes ahead of a potential meeting between President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping next month. Sens. Mike Crapo (R-ID), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), John Kennedy (R-LA), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) are also on the trip.

“At the foundation of our relationship must be a level playing field for American businesses and workers as well as responsible competition. We need reciprocity,” Schumer said in a statement on Tuesday, describing the conversation with Xi and senior Chinese officials as “honest, but productive.”

“That means allowing American companies to compete as freely in China as Chinese companies are able to compete in America. I made clear to President Xi that we do not believe there is a level playing field or reciprocity now,” the New York Democrat added.

The senator did not give any indication as to how the Chinese officials responded to their comments. The U.S. and China have been at odds over trade, human rights, Taiwan, and other topics. The trip also comes on the heels of a diplomatic offensive by the Biden administration, which has simultaneously sought to defuse tensions with its geopolitical rival while restricting access to critical technologies. In recent months, high-ranking officials, from Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, have also made visits to Beijing.

Schumer said he called on China to “take more aggressive action” to stop the flow of fentanyl into the U.S.

“Right now, the scourge of fentanyl is costing tens of thousands of lives and destroying American families,” the New York senator said. “China taking meaningful actions on this critical issue will go a long way to improving relations between our two counties, which is a good deal for both of us.”

On Monday, Schumer said he was grateful for a stronger statement from China that condemned the killing and kidnapping of Israeli civilians by Hamas after expressing disappointment with an earlier response that merely called for restraint.

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Earlier in the day, Schumer told Foreign Minister Wang Yi that he had been disappointed by China’s decision not to condemn the attack on Israel.

Later on Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning released a new statement, saying China was “deeply saddened by the civilian casualties caused by the conflict between Palestine and Israel.”