Chinese and US tourism officials kicked off their first-ever dialogue meeting on Wednesday in Charlotte, North Carolina, to explore ways of increasing cooperation on travel-related matters.

Chinese tourism officials, including those from different provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, and dozens of US state tourism directors are expected to ink the Initiative on Establishment of China-US Strategic Cooperation Framework in Tourism during their two-day meeting.

Tourism cooperation and exchanges between China and the United States have maintained the good momentum of development in recent years, and the travel industries of both countries are achieving win-win results, Du Jiang, vice chairman of the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA), told the opening of the meeting, or the China-US Tourism Directors Summit.

Du, heading the Chinese delegation, said bilateral cooperation and exchanges in tourism will reach a new height.

Du said the CNTA is working with the US Commerce Department and Homeland Security Department to jointly explore new grounds for cooperation in the tourism industry.

"We can learn a lot from each other," said Roger J. Dow, president and CEO of the Washington-based Travel Industry Association (TIA), co-sponsor of the conference.

"During the next 10 years, the amount of travelers from both countries is expected to grow significantly. It makes sense that we explore ways to encourage travel to our respective countries," Dow said.

(Xinhua News Agency October 26, 2007)