China, Mongolia seek to bolster tourism cooperation

ULAN BATOR, Nov.3 (Xinhua) -- A seminar promoting tourism cooperation with China was held in Mongolia's capital on Friday.

The seminar covered the current state of tourism in Mongolia and cross-border tourism initiatives.

Li Zhi, counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Mongolia and director of the Chinese Cultural Center in Ulan Bator, emphasized that tourism is a bridge that promotes cultural and people-to-people exchanges, enhancing mutual understanding and friendship between China and Mongolia.

"China is the main market for Mongolia's tourism sector. Therefore, we have been implementing many activities to further strengthen cultural and tourism cooperation between Mongolia and China and deepen the mutual understanding between the two peoples," said Dagvajamts Batsukh, head of Ulan Bator's tourism department.

Around 60 relevant officials and experts from both countries attended the seminar co-organized by the Chinese Cultural Center in Ulan Bator, Ulan Bator's Tourism Department and the Mongolian Tourism Association.

The Mongolian government has taken measures to revive the pandemic-hit tourism sector. The number of foreign tourist arrivals in Mongolia exceeded 600,000 by the end of October, an all-time high and surpassing 2019's figure.

China was one of the biggest sources of tourist arrivals for Mongolia in the January-October period.