Objectives As an ecological barrier in northern Xinjiang, Altai mountains is not only an important distribution area of mountain grasslands and coniferous forests in Xinjiang, but also one of the preferred areas for national park construction in China. Currently, the construction of national parks in Xinjiang remains in the exploratory phase, encountering significant challenges in the accelerated advancement of construction. A thorough examination of the imperative to expedite the development of Altai Mountains National Park has been conducted, with the objective of establishing a foundation for the construction of national parks in Xinjiang.

Methods By means of literature analysis, field survey, in-depth interviews, informal discussions, and insightful exchanges, we can further understand the background of the resources of the Altai mountains and grasp the advantages and urgency of establishing a national park in this region.

Results The ecological location of Altai mountains was of significance, as evidenced by the presence of natural resources and landscape cultural resources that were typical. The biodiversity was abundant, and the area was of high conservation value. The construction of regional nature reserves was well-founded, yet the region was confronted with challenges such as ecological environment degradation, resource destruction, biodiversity loss, glacier melting, and inadequate management and protection capacity.

Conclusions The Altai Mountains constituted an important component of the "Altai Sayan Ecological Area", the sole extension of the Siberian taiga in China and the exclusive distribution area of Siberian flora and fauna in Palaearctic Europe. The Altai Mountains hold paramount importance as a hotspot of terrestrial biodiversity, a vital ecological barrier and a pivotal strategic reserve area of water resources in Xinjiang, endowing it with considerable ecological and strategic value. It was recommended that the existing nature reserves should be taken as the main body, and the Altai Mountains National Park should be constructed as soon as possible to carry out scientific protection and management, build a solid ecological security barrier in northern Xinjiang, and achieve green and high-quality development.