South Korea, China and Japan have agreed to increase the number of tourists traveling between the three nations from an estimated 17 million this year to 26 million by 2015.

The tourism-related ministers of the three countries forged the agreement in a meeting held in Hangzhou, China, on Sunday.

The three countries also agreed to strengthen exchanges and cooperation in the tourism sector and to seek the codevelopment of their tourism industries.

As part of efforts to expand cooperation in tourism, the three countries will streamline immigration procedures and will boost exchanges in other sectors such as the medical, sports and culture industries. They will also jointly work to tackle environmental problems.

The three countries will hold the sixth meeting of their tourism ministers in South Korea next year.