The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is actively working to boost tourism exchanges. It has recently been pursuing practical measures, including marketing cooperation, with major countries in Northeast and Southeast Asia.
According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) on the 28th, Minister Choi Hwi-young attended the 13th APEC Tourism Ministers' Meeting as the chief delegate in Macao Special Administrative Region of China on the 27th and discussed digital innovation in tourism and ways to strengthen multilateral cooperation. That day, Choi held a series of bilateral meetings with four countries, including China, Japan, Indonesia and Vietnam, and exchanged views on practical cooperation measures to promote mutual tourism exchanges, such as marketing cooperation for tourism products, visa easing and improved entry procedures. In a meeting with Sun Yeli, China’s Minister of Culture and Tourism, Choi also proposed designating 2027-2028 as the "Korea-China Tourism Year." Sun agreed, saying, "Tourism markets in Korea and China are absolutely important to each other, and the key is to make it possible for us to meet more often," and added that the two sides should continue detailed consultations in the future. Choi also presided over separate bilateral meetings with Widianti Putri Wardhana, Minister of Tourism of Indonesia, Ram Thi Phuong Thanh, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Vietnam, and Murata Shigeki, Commissioner of the Japan Tourism Agency, stressing the importance of expanding tourism exchanges.
Choi said, "I will do my utmost in follow-up measures so that the results of the consecutive meetings with major countries can quickly lead to growth in inbound tourism."
Reporter Kim Se-hyung fax123@sportschosun.com
