China and Kazakhstan's visa-free agreement marked its second anniversary on Monday, with more than 4.64 million cross-border trips recorded at Xinjiang ports in the past two years.
Over the two years since the agreement took effect on Nov 10, 2023, Urumqi Tianshan International Airport alone has handled over 179,000 visa-free passenger trips between the two countries, accounting for 10.3 percent of all the cross-border passenger trips through Xinjiang ports. More than 118,000 of them were Kazakh nationals entering China visa-free.
The Urumqi airport currently operates three regular international passenger routes connecting to Almaty, Astana and Shymkent.
"I come from Guangzhou. The visa-free policy is very convenient. I've already flown to Kazakhstan twice this year via Urumqi. Here you have more flight options," said Yang Suijia, a passenger from Guangdong in the south.
"Driven by the visa-free agreement, more international airlines, including Scat and FlyArystan, have opened services at the Urumqi airport and increased flight frequencies between Urumqi and Kazakhstan. There are now around 50 round-trip flights per week, up 43 percent year on year," said Wang Wei, officer at the Urumqi Exit and Entry Border Inspection Station.
This year alone, cross-border passenger traffic between China and Kazakhstan through Xinjiang ports has totaled 2.283 million, a 25.3 percent increase year on year.
Xinjiang ports record surging visa-free trips to, from Kazakhstan
Xinjiang ports record surging visa-free trips to, from Kazakhstan
The restricted navigation through the Strait of Hormuz has triggered significant disruptions across the international shipping sector, driving up shipping costs and legal pressures related to shipping.
Iran has restricted navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital strategic waterway linking the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean, as part of its response to U.S. and Israeli military attacks that started on Feb 28.
The partial blockade of this vital global energy route has not only impacted global energy supplies but also caused a ripple effect on energy trading, shipping operations, and the insurance market.
Wai Yue Loh, partner of DAC Beachcroft, and a specialist in shipping, trade, commodities and insurance law said he has been dealing with questions from shipping clients after the conflict in Iran broke out.
He said the commodities traders bear the brunt of Strait of Hormuz crisis and explained the interconnected vulnerabilities across the three industries most affected.
"It's easy to forget that the first industry directly affected would be the commodities traders who are buying and reselling crude oil coming out from the Middle East. Crude oil cargoes from this region account for about 25 percent or more of the world's crude oil supplies. The second industry affected would be the shipowners or the ship operators whose ships are chartered by these commodities traders, in simple terms hired by these commodity traders, to carry these cargoes from the Persian Gulf to refineries around the world for refining. These refined products are then on-sold to other buyers worldwide. The third would be the insurance industry that provides, amongst other things, war risk cover for ships that are trading globally," he said.
With the rising risks of war, shipping companies face not only security challenges but also complex legal issues such as rising insurance costs, increased uncertainty in contract performance, and the apportionment of liability, he added.
Hormuz Strait crisis delivers severe blow to global shipping industry
