BAKU, Dec 22 (DNA): An Azerbaijani delegation led by Fuad Naghiyev, Chairman of Azerbaijan’s State Tourism Agency, visited China to attend the CITM 2025 (China International Travel Mart) international tourism exhibition.

As part of the visit to Beijing, the delegation met with China’s Minister of Culture and Tourism Sun Yeli to discuss the development of tourism relations between the two countries.

The sides noted that the recent establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and China, thanks to the efforts of President Ilham Aliyev and President Xi Jinping, has contributed to the expansion of cooperation in tourism, as well as in other fields.

In his remarks, Fuad Naghiyev highlighted the growth of tourism exchanges with China, driven in part by visa waiver arrangements. He emphasized that Azerbaijan will continue to market and promote its tourism potential in China and plans to open a tourism representative office there to further deepen bilateral ties. He also provided information on the China Ready program, describing it as ushering in a new stage of bilateral tourism cooperation.

Minister Sun Yeli, noting the strengthened bilateral relations, said that the expansion of economic and political cooperation between Azerbaijan and China in recent years has had a significant positive impact on tourism. He stressed the importance of joint activities in this sphere and the expansion of direct cooperation between representatives of the tourism industries of both countries.

Azerbaijan’s Ambassador to China Bunyad Huseynov also attended the meeting.

At the CITM 2025 exhibition, Azerbaijan actively promoted its tourism potential through a national stand featuring the Azerbaijan Tourism Bureau, Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL), the Shahdag Tourism Center, and other local partners. As part of the exhibition, Azerbaijan’s national stand was awarded the Best Stand nomination.

On the sidelines of the exhibition in Haikou, Fuad Naghiyev also met with China’s Vice Minister of Culture and Tourism Gao Zheng, as well as Secretary-General of the UN Tourism Zurab Pololikashvili, who visited the Azerbaijani stand.

CITM 2025, held at the Hainan International Convention and Exhibition Centre, serves as a strategic platform for fostering international tourism partnerships.