Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich and Council Vice President Will Jawando are on a 13-day county trade mission to China and Japan.

Elrich’s team has billed the trip as an opportunity to take part in a summit for U.S.-China sister cities and to promote the county to Chinese companies considering entering the U.S. market or expanding their existing footprints.

It’s not uncommon for state and local officials to go on trade missions. Since taking office in 2018, Elrich has led three such trips, with stops in Taiwan, India, Vietnam, South Korea and China.

Elrich, the county’s top official, is typically joined by a County Council member on these missions. Elrich has endorsed Jawando in June’s election, which will determine his successor — Elrich is term-limited and will leave office in December 2026.

The six-member delegation also includes Judy Costello, the county’s director of economic development special projects, and representatives of state and local economic and cultural commissions.

The county delegation left Sunday and is scheduled to return Oct. 31.

This is Elrich’s second trip to China in two years. The delegation will visit Montgomery County‘s sister city, Xi’an, in the country’s northwest region, and also the Chinese cities of Shanghai, Shenzhen and Hangzhou, and the Japanese cities of Osaka, Kyoto, Kanagawa, Fujisawa and Tokyo.

Each stop will feature meetings, networking events, company site visits, dinners and other engagements with business leaders and government officials, according to county spokesman Scott Peterson.

The trip to China comes amid escalating economic tensions between the administrations of President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Trump recently announced 100% tariffs on Chinese goods that are set to take effect next month.

Peterson said the county had yet to determine the exact cost of Elrich’s and Costello’s trips, which the county will partially pay for. He said he could only speak to the funding for Elrich and Costello, both of whom work directly for the county. The county is covering the full cost of Costello’s trip.

Part of Elrich’s travel costs will be covered by Sister Cities International and the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation.

A spokesperson for Jawando could not immediately be reached Friday evening for information about the funding of his trip.