Foreign tourists in Myeongdong in Seoul, South Korea, on July 26, 2026 Photo: VCG

　　The Chinese Embassy in South Korea has rejected recent media reports claiming that Chinese tourists are the main driver of growth in South Korea"s casino industry, urging Seoul to tighten the oversight of casino industry and curb gambling-related solicitation targeting Chinese visitors.

　　According to a post on its WeChat account on Monday, Tang Liang, counselor in charge of consular affairs at the Chinese Embassy in South Korea wrote an article in the Korea Times, criticizing certain South Korean media claims that casinos in Korea should make the return of Chinese tourists their core growth engine and position Chinese visitors as the primary clientele for the gambling industry.

　　"We are deeply shocked by such remarks and firmly opposed to such practices, which warrant serious reconsideration," Tang wrote.

　　The article critically examines the social harms of gambling, explains the anti-gambling laws and policies of both China and South Korea, and calls on the South Korean side, in the broader context of China-South Korea friendship, to regulate casino operations and stop gambling solicitation targeting Chinese tourists, according to the embassy.

　　The embassy said both China and South Korea have laws and policies that restrict gambling, noting that South Korea bars its own citizens from entering most casinos, while China maintains a zero-tolerance stance toward gambling and also prohibits Chinese citizens from gambling overseas.