MOSCOW, March 7. /TASS/. Russia and China are progressing toward scrapping visas, Zhang Wei, Charge d’Affaires ad interim of the Chinese embassy in Moscow, told TASS.
"We would like to bring more comfort to trips of the two countries’ citizens so that they can meet more often and visit each other. That would only be beneficial," the Chinese diplomat said, referring to potential visa-free travel between the two countries. "We are currently discussing these matters, making progress on this," he added.
According to Zhang, both sides are currently holding visa-free talks. "We will exchange opinions on these issues, as we have the same target in view. And of course, this involves numerous agencies in China and Russia. It will take a certain period of time, but I doubt it will be long [before we scrap visas]," the Chinese diplomat concluded.
Russia and China simplified visa procedures for reciprocal travel by their citizens in 2013. Also, Russians do not need a visa for China’s special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macao. And in 2023, the two countries reinstated a bilateral intergovernmental agreement on visa-free travel for groups of tourists.