"
The governor of the Northern Marianas says the CNMI economy will severely impacted without the visa waivers for Chinese and Russian tourists.
Governor Benigno Fitial vowed to continue asking the federal government for the inclusion of both China and Russia in the visa waiver programme.
He says they have just received the draft regulations and he has assigned the acting Attorney General Gregory Baka to look them over.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security says visitors from China and Russia cannot seek admission under the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Programme due to security concerns.
Under current local rules, tourists from Russia and China can visit the CNMI without first securing a U.S. visa.
