Matan Vilnai said he aims to bring 100,000 Chinese tourists to Israel by 2017. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

JNS.org – Israeli Ambassador to China Matan Vilnai said he aims to bring a one-year total of 100,000 Chinese tourists to Israel two years from now.

“My personal goal is 100,000 tourists in Israel in the year 2017,” Vilani said Wednesday.

“That is why we are promoting a process of abolition of visas,” he said, explaining that the process for canceling visa requirements for Chinese citizens traveling to Israel is already underway and is a crucial step in the growth of diplomatic and economic relations between China and Israel, The Jerusalem Post reported.

The announcement comes after Hainan Airlines, which is China’s fourth-largest airline as well as the country’s largest private carrier, said in January that it plans to offer three direct flights per week from Beijing to Tel Aviv beginning in September. The new flights will operate on days during which Israel’s El Al Airlines does not fly along that route.