Heilongjiang Border Crossings See 76.9% Surge in Russian Arrivals

The surge shows how quickly visa liberalisation can translate into hard border traffic, and it positions Heilongjiang's ports as a testing ground for whether people-to-people flows follow policy easing more broadly. The effect is most tangible for regional transport, hospitality and cross-border retail operators, though the data covers entries, not spending or duration of stay. Whether the momentum holds once the trial's novelty fades — and whether it extends beyond Heilongjiang's frontier economy — is the open question.