On February 20, Minister of Culture and Tourism Hu Heping met with the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism of the HKSAR Government, Mr. Yang Runxiong, in Beijing.

Hu Heping affirmed the achievements of cultural and tourism exchanges and cooperation between Hong Kong and the mainland in recent years. He said that the Ministry of Culture and Tourism attaches great importance to the development of culture and tourism in Hong Kong, and supports Hong Kong to consolidate and enhance its competitive advantages and develop a center for cultural and artistic exchanges between China and the rest of the world. In recent years, the collaboration mechanism between the Mainland and Hong Kong in the field of culture and tourism has been continuously improved, the environment for industrial cooperation has been continuously optimized, and the exchanges and cooperation have shown an omni-directional, wide-ranging and multi-channel pattern. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism will strongly support the high-quality development of culture and tourism in Hong Kong, giving full play to Hong Kong's strengths and contributing to the country's needs. It is hoped that Hong Kong will seize the opportunities of national development, actively participate in international exchanges and cooperation, inherit and promote traditional Chinese culture, and build up a strong synergy of unity and endeavor.

Mr. Yang Runxiong thanked the Ministry of Culture and Tourism for its strong support to the development of Hong Kong. He said Hong Kong will actively cooperate with the overall national strategy, strengthen cultural exchanges and cooperation with the Mainland, promote the linkage and collaboration with the Mainland in tourism, promote the excellent traditional Chinese culture, promote the development of cultural and creative industries, play a good role as a center of cultural and artistic exchanges between China and the Mainland, and tell the story of China and the story of Hong Kong well.

The two sides also exchanged views on issues such as "mutually supporting the development of cultural and tourism exchange brand projects" and "supporting Hong Kong to better participate in the country's external cultural and tourism exchanges and cooperation".