Korea & Egypt and people-to-people in the post-Covid era.

Korean Ambassador Hong Jin-wook and His Excellency the Egyptian Minister of Civil Aviation, Lieutenant General Mohamed Abbas Helmy, discuss ways of cooperation to activate people-to-people exchange between the two countries in the post-Covid pandemic era.

The Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Egypt, Mr. Hong Jin-wook, met Lieutenant General Mohamed Abbas Helmy, Egyptian Minister of Civil Aviation, on Tuesday, November 29, to congratulate him on his assumption of the ministerial portfolio. The two sides exchanged their views on ways of cooperation between the two countries to activate people-to-people exchange.
Ambassador Hong stated that Egypt’s travel advisory level for Korean citizens was lowered last August for the first time in 8 years. Therefore it is expected that the number of Korean tourists to Egypt will increase in the next stage. He is also looking forward to continuing discussions with the Egyptian side on ways of cooperation to activate people-to-people exchange between the two countries, including strengthening security measures to ensure the safety of tourists. He pointed out that the airline management has been revived despite the non-resumption of the operation of the direct airline between the two countries, as Korea Air and Asiana Airlines plan to operate charter flights during January and February of next year, and said that the Korean Embassy would provide full support to facilitate talks to resume direct flights between the two countries.

For his part, Minister Lieutenant General Muhammad Abbas Helmy expressed his hope for an increase in the number of Korean tourists coming to Egypt in the next stage as a result of lowering the travel advisory and operating charter flights, indicating that these measures will be a cornerstone for activating people to people exchange between the two countries. He asked the Korean Embassy to continuously support EgyptAir, which is working to restore direct flights between Korea and Egypt, expressing his gratitude for the Korean Embassy’s efforts in this regard.
Ambassador Hong and Minister Mohamed Abbas Helmy agreed on the need to find innovative ways to activate people-to-people exchange between the two countries and agreed to maintain close communication to accomplish it.