The decision to unilaterally introduce a visa-free regime for Chinese citizens in Kyrgyzstan was announced by Deputy Prime Minister Edil Baisalov during a conference commemorating the 10th anniversary of the ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative.

This development was reported by Adil Kaukenov, a renowned expert on China, with reference to Kyrgyzstan’s media.

«While details are still unknown, it seems that Bishkek is genuinely concerned about being left in visa isolation in comparison to its neighbors. There were reports in May that Kyrgyzstan was negotiating a visa-free regime, but in a bilateral format. However, it appears the negotiations failed due to the inflexibility of the Chinese side.

Hence, Bishkek has seemingly decided to change tactics and move towards a unilateral visa-free regime. However, this is not with all of China but only with specific regions. It will be interesting to see the list of these regions.

It’s worth noting that Kyrgyzstan’s position is not particularly strong when it comes to resolving visa issues. Its low GDP, the flow of labor migrants, past attacks on the Chinese embassy, and a series of revolutions have raised significant concerns for Beijing regarding the risks of lifting the visa regime.»