Peru welcomes its approved destination status ADS by China and "the approval accomplished one of goals of our foreign minister's ongoing China tour," Jorge Chian, economic and commercial counselor with the Peruvian Embassy in Beijing, told in Beijing on Tuesday.

The ADS was announced Monday by the Chinese government following the talks between visiting Peruvian Foreign Minister Manuel Rodriguez Cuadros and his Chinese counterpart Li Zhaoxing.

Peru is the forth country in South America to receive ADS granted by China. The others are Brazil, Argentina and Chile.

This shows China's trust in Peru and recognition of its abundant tourist resources, Rodriguez said, Peru values the burgeoning China market and looks forward to having more Chinese touring in Peru.

Chinese tourists will increase to 100 million by 2020, according to the World Tourism Organization's estimation.

Peru will expect 250,000 Chinese tourists in the year following receiving ADS, according to a Peruvian official in charge of national travel administration. Peru received about 5,000 Chinese tourists in 2003.

(Xinhua News Agency December 15, 2004)