Aksit: Turkey safe country for holiday-makers

Surdo said that Turkey was a safe country for holiday-makers, noting that Turkey should attach considerable importance to its promotion. “The travel agencies abroad should inform tour operators concerning the developments in Turkey,” added Surdo.

In response to a question from the press about the Severe Acute Deficiency Syndrome (SARS) known as “mysterious pneumonia” and how the disease would affect the Turkish-Italian tourism, Aksit said that it would not cause any negative events, adding that the government took necessary measures on the issue.

After the reception with Zhylevich, Aksit said that Turkey attached importance to improve social and cultural relations by means of tourism. “The rate of tourists coming from the Republic of Belarus increased by 78 percent in 2001 when compared to 2000 and as for the year 2002, the rate increased by 112 percent,” said Aksit, wishing that the number will go up even more in this year.