Deputy Minister of Tourism of Cyprus, Kostas Koumis, and Vice Minister of Culture and Tourism of China, Li Qun exchanged on Monday ideas, views and suggestions, during a meeting at the Ministry of Tourism, in Nicosia, in a bid to further strengthen the cooperation between Cyprus and China in the tourism sector.

According to an official press release, circulated by the Press and Information Office, Li Qun was accompanied by the Chinese Ambassador to Cyprus and a small delegation, while it is noted that this is the first time that an official of the Chinese Government visits the Deputy Ministry of Tourism.

It was agreed that an online conference between the two Deputy Ministries will be scheduled during the 2nd half of July and that the cooperation will proceed with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding.

It is added that at the meeting, Koumis, after praising the characteristics and advantages of Cyprus as a tourist destination, stressed the need to pursue a direct air link between Cyprus and China.

He also proposed, the statement continues, to include as discussion chapters, both in the online conference and in the Memorandum of Understanding, educational tourism, placing particular emphasis on the effort of Cyprus to become a destination for those interested in improving their knowledge of foreign languages, sports tourism, stressing that in the past teams from China visited Cyprus for preparation.

It is also reported that Koumis added that it would be extremely beneficial to make a relevant plan to promote the gastronomy of each country, while he extended an invitation to his Chinese counterpart to participate in the annual tourism exhibition organized in Cyprus.

The Chinese Deputy Minister thanked his Cypriot counterpart for the hospitality and the meeting and invited him to visit China, the statement concludes.