Acting President Han Duck-soo announced on Thursday that the government will swiftly implement a visa-free pilot program for Chinese group tourists to help revitalize the tourism market, which has been negatively affected by the December 3 emergency martial law incident.

During the Ninth National Tourism Strategy Meeting held earlier in the day, Han stressed that it was urgent and important to reassure the international community that tourism to South Korea is safe.

Han also revealed plans to extend the temporary exemption of the Electronic Travel Authorization(K-ETA) for 22 countries, including the U.S. and Japan.

The acting president also outlined plans to accelerate the execution of next year's tourism budget in the first half of the year, as well as provide financial support and special loans to stabilize the tourism industry.

In a further push to revitalize tourism to the country after the December 3 martial law incident, Han said the government will actively explain the safety of traveling to South Korea through overseas diplomatic missions, press briefings with foreign media, and collaborations with international outlets to restore the country’s tourism image.