U.S. Representative Ami Bera has been reelected as the chairman of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific, Central Asia, and Nonproliferation. 

In a statement released on Thursday, the 55-year-old Democrat from California noted the significance of Asia, calling it "the most consequential region" for American foreign policy for economic and security reasons among others. 

Mentioning "a provocative North Korea" and "an authoritarian China" as major challenges to be addressed by the U.S. Congress, Bera vowed to tackle those problems with fellow members of the subcommittee and rebuild the U.S. alliance in Asia and the Pacific. 

Korean-American lawmaker Andy Kim, a Democrat from New Jersey who has been reelected to the U.S. House of Representatives, was also selected to serve on the subcommittee. 

Meanwhile, Bera also serves as co-chair of the U.S. Congressional Caucus on Korea.