Interview with the Minister of Culture and Tourism of Turkey

Sputnik Türkiye talked with the Minister of Culture and Tourism of Turkey Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, where he answered the questions of concern to everyone involved in the travel industry and gave forecasts for the season.

"Should we wait for a delegation from Russia before the summer?"

Perhaps in the coming weeks, we will have another meeting and will clarify the date of arrival [of the Russian delegation] in Turkey. The good news is that the number of cases in Turkey continues to decline. Our first goal was to go below 10 thousand [sick], the last 2 days the figures were below 10 thousand. Our goal is to reduce the number of cases below 5,000 by June 1. Turkey is doing well in achieving this goal. There is more good news. Especially in destinations such as Antalya, Bodrum, Marmaris and Dalaman, which are visited by Russian tourists, the number of infections is much lower. In the southern provinces, this figure is 50% lower than the Turkish average. These numbers show how safe it is.

"How do you assess the preparations for the new tourist season in Turkey?"

Unlike other countries, Turkey was one of the first to initiate a safe tourism certification program last year. Last year we increased the number of criteria. Over the past year, we have increased the number of criteria. We started with 136 criteria. This year, the number of criteria increased to 171. Last year, obtaining this certificate was mandatory in places with 50 or more beds. This year - for 30 numbers and more: if up to 30 numbers - [obtaining a certificate] voluntarily, if higher - mandatory. This year, more than 9800 objects were included in the certification program.

Turkey's health sector is closely linked to the tourism industry

The modern hospitals that have opened in the last 10 years have enabled Turkey to overcome the [pandemic] process very well in terms of medical services. We are well organized in the tourist regions. Private hospitals and hotels are linked to each other by protocol. We had the opportunity to test the results of applying the Safe Tourism Certificate in 2020. As you know, Turkey was visited by 2.1 million tourists from Russia. As it was announced, the number of returned infected people was about 417 people. This is a very, very low figure. This shows how well the system is performing. We have experienced it with many European tourists. The data we receive from their Foreign Ministry is also very important. This shows that there are no major problems with tourists coming from Turkey.

Cancellation of PCR tests for tourists from Russia

Now there is a lot of research in the European Union, and we are also doing it. Our Ministry of Health is considering several criteria for applying or canceling PCR tests for each individual country. The most important criterion is the level of vaccination in the country as a whole. We are also looking at the data of new cases of infection. If they are below a certain level, it is not necessary to undergo a PCR test, which means that the epidemic is already under control there. Due to this, with many countries, PCR testing has been phased out. The European Union reached a consensus last week. People are allowed to enter without a PCR test if they receive two doses of vaccines. But they don't recognize the Russian vaccine. And as you know, the Russian vaccine is valid for us. Sputnik V vaccine is recognized in Turkey, Sinovac vaccine is also recognized and other vaccines of the European Union are also recognized.