China and Turkey have vowed to strengthen tourism cooperation in order to stimulate the increase of visitors to each country, tourism officials from both countries said in Beijing on Thursday.

Measures to be taken include promoting more regular and charter flights, inviting more tourism operators to visit each other's countries and holding annual conferences between the two tourism departments.

Tourism is an important bridge for friendship and development. China and Turkey have had cultural and economic relations for a long time. Modern technology provides an easier way for tourism cooperation, said Shao Qiwei, director of China's National Tourism Administration, at a meeting of the China-Turkish Tourism Joint Committee which concluded in Beijing on Thursday.

In order to better serve Chinese tourists, Turkey plans to increase the number of tourist guides and open more Chinese restaurants. Turkey has also launched a tourism information website in the Chinese language, said Atlilla Koc, Turkish minister of culture and tourism, at the meeting.

(Xinhua News Agency November 11, 2005)