HANOI, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam welcomes China's decision to include Vietnamese citizens in the 240-hour visa-free transit program and the 30-day visa-free entry policy for Hainan Province starting Thursday, Pham Thu Hang, spokesperson for the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has said.
Regarding whether Vietnam plans to introduce visa exemptions for Chinese citizens, Hang said at the ministry's press briefing that Vietnam will continue working with China on the issue in the spirit of facilitating travel and trade between the two sides.
Effective Aug. 20, citizens of Kyrgyzstan and Vietnam holding ordinary passports and interline passenger tickets with confirmed dates and itineraries bound for a third country or region may enter China through any of the 65 ports across the country and stay for up to 240 hours, or 10 days, without a visa, China's immigration authorities announced on Thursday.
Citizens of the two countries holding ordinary passports will also be eligible for the 30-day visa-free entry policy for Hainan Province in south China starting the same day, allowing them to enter the province through Hainan's open ports and stay visa-free for up to 30 days. ■