CEBU CITY, Jan 27 (Bernama-PNA) -- The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), under Philippine chairship, is seeking to sustain practical collaboration with Russia to promote frictionless travel and tourism growth in the region, the Philippines News Agency (PNA) reported.
Speaking at the 16th Asean-Russia Tourism Consultation on Tuesday, Tourism Undersecretary Verna Buensuceso said Asean is aiming to build an "inclusive" and "resilient" tourism sector.
"We value the Russian Federation as a long-standing partner of Asean in strengthening people-to-people exchanges.
"And this partnership matters because it is grounded on shared aspirations -tourism that is resilient in the face of disruption, inclusive in the opportunities it creates, rooted in respect for culture, heritage and nature, and a force for peace and international understanding," she said.
Buensuceso said Asean is keen to pursue cooperation that boosts traveller confidence and safety, supports workforce development and skills exchange, and improves connectivity to make travel more accessible and seamless.
She also proposed further collaboration through digital marketing as well as the sharing of travel-related data and best practices.
For his part, Russian Ministry of Economic Development Deputy Director Igor Maksimov, the meeting's co-chair, expressed hopes for the full recovery of two-way tourism.
Four years after the pandemic, Maksimov said tourism flow between Russia and Asean states has steadily recovered by 93 per cent.
"And the figure keeps growing. In this regard, the adoption of a new joint work plan until 2030 seems to be a good step to developing a commercially beneficial partnership," he said.
The meeting was part of the week-long Asean-related talks being convened in Cebu City under the Philippine chairship. - Bernama-PNA
