Saudi Arabia seeks more Chinese tourists: tourism minister

China

Saudi Arabia seeks more Chinese tourists: tourism minister

2024-06-11 17:15 Last Updated At：22:37

Saudi Arabia will further unlock its tourist sector to attract more Chinese tourists to visit, Saudi Minister of Tourism Ahmed Al-Khateeb said in Spain on Monday, adding that the Chinese market is extremely important.

Al-Khateeb is chairing the 121st session of the Executive Council of the United Nations World Tourism Organization held in Barcelona, Spain, from Monday to Tuesday.

In an interview with China Global Television Network via video link, Al-Khateeb highlighted the measures his country has taken to facilitate Chinese people's travel to Saudi, including establishing travel agencies in China and launching more direct flights.

"We decided to unlock the tourism sector - a part of Vision 2030, and China is one of the most important markets for us because China exports the highest number of tourists globally, and therefore, the Chinese market is extremely important for us. We established an office for Visit Saudi in China and we have just signed with and start to fly the Chinese Eastern and Southern Airlines from Shanghai and Beijing - direct flights to Riyadh. And we are promoting Visit Saudi. You want to enjoy the Red Sea, the beach, and the sun and sea, or learn about the Saudi and the Arabian culture in the big cities and visit the different UNESCO-listed sites. For us, the Chinese tourists are very, very important," said the minister.

He also underscored the growth potential of tourist arrivals from China as well as the convenience of the e-visa system.

"We have less than a million visitors from China last year. And we want to grow this number because more than 100 million tourists travel from China to visit different countries around the world every year. We want to have a fair market share of 2 to 3 percent, which is 3 to 4 million Chinese visiting Saudi Arabia and to learn about our culture again. For us, China is very important. China was among the first countries to have the e-visa, and three to five minutes, get a visa to visit Saudi Arabia and enjoy the different Saudi cities," said the minister.

Netanyahu says Israel rejects U.S.-backed 15-point Gaza peace plan

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Sunday that Israel rejects a 15-point Gaza peace roadmap plan presented by the U.S.-led "Board of Peace," maintaining that Israeli forces will not withdraw until Hamas is fully disarmed.

The announcement marks Israel's first official and straightforward rejection of the plan.

Netanyahu told the weekly cabinet meeting that Israeli forces, which Israeli officials had previously estimated control about 70 percent of Gaza, will continue to carry out attacks in the enclave to "thwart threats."

"When I say disarming Hamas, I mean the heavy weapons, the less heavy weapons -- all weapons," Netanyahu said.

Israel is still in talks with the United States about the document of the plan, he said. "They have ideas, some of which are acceptable to us and some of which are not, and we know how to stand our ground on these matters."

The plan was drafted in May by Nickolay Mladenov, "high representative for Gaza" of the "Board of Peace," and officially announced by U.S. President Donald Trump in late July, who said back then the board had reached an agreement on the "complete disarmament" of Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza.

A day after Trump's announcement, Hamas said it had agreed to the "latest version of the roadmap" for the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement after "fierce" negotiations, but conditioned weaponry arrangements on a complete halt to "aggression," Israeli withdrawal from the enclave, and progress on reconstruction.

Since a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel came into effect in October 2025, Israeli attacks have killed more than 1,250 people and injured over 4,100 others in Gaza, according to Gaza-based health authorities.