Nearly 10,000 people from the Republic of Korea (ROK) tour China each day, which will make the total number of ROK tourists hit 3.5 million this year, ROK ambassador to China Kim Ha Joong said Tuesday.

Kim made the remarks while attending the Hebei-ROK Friendship Week jointly sponsored by the People's Government of Hebei and the ROK embassy in Beijing.

People from ROK began entering China in 1992 when the two countries established diplomatic their diplomatic relations. Previously, Those from ROK intending to visit China were required to get special permission from their government in advance before traveling to China.

However, more than 20 ROK cities have reportedly opened air services linking the two countries. As a result, the number of tourist trips to China topped 2.9 million last year.

The cooperation between the two countries in the political, economic, social and cultural sectors has been growing at an unprecedented pace ever since the forging of diplomatic ties between the two countries more than a decade ago, an official with the ROK embassy said, adding that the two countries are making efforts to build a comprehensive and cooperative partnership.

(Xinhua News Agency November 9, 2005)