Male July 4 (IANS) The Maldivian government is aiming to strengthen tourism ties with China by establishing direct air links between the two countries by the year-end Tourism Minister Moosa Zameer said on Tuesday.
Zameer said in an interview with Xinhua that China was one of the leading countries for Maldives tourism but Chinese arrivals had seen a decline in recent months due to a state of emergency declared by President Abdulla Yameen in February.
Presently there are around 13 flights between China and Maldives weekly but these destinations are connected through a transit airport.
"If there are no direct flights it is not convenient for tourists. We have been trying hard to start operations with wide-body aircraft and we hope to start operations by the end of this year " the minister said.

--IANS him/vd