China-North Korea bridge to open Thursday, 12 years late

Beijing announces opening of 12-year-delayed China-North Korea bridge

On Thursday, China will inaugurate a new bridge linking its northeastern border city of Dandong with North Korea, marking the long-awaited completion of the 3,026-meter New Yalu River vehicle bridge. The ambitious project, initially conceived a decade ago, has been held up by a lack of connecting roads and customs facilities on the North Korean side, according to South Korea's Yonhap news agency.

Beijing sees the bridge as a catalyst for bolstering trade and improving the lives of both peoples, given that China is North Korea's largest trading partner and a crucial diplomatic, economic, and political ally. Despite North Korea's deepening ties with Russia, the new bridge could serve as a vital conduit for China's goods and resources, potentially boosting the North Korean economy.

Ahn Chan-il, a researcher originally from North Korea, predicts that the bridge will allow hundreds of vehicles to cross daily, significantly increasing the scale of cross-border exchanges. The bridge is intended to complement the existing Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge, which, while once used regularly, now has limited capacity for passenger trains.

South Korea's unification ministry is closely monitoring the situation surrounding the bridge's opening, noting that North Korea has yet to resume issuing tourism visas to Chinese citizens. The New Yalu River Bridge's opening comes just over a month after North Korea and Russia opened their first road bridge, which Pyongyang hailed as a symbol of closer ties.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning emphasized that the bridge's opening will promote economic and trade exchanges and facilitate people-to-people movement, ultimately enhancing the well-being of both nations.