(LEAD) N. Korea, China open new cross-border bridge 12 yrs after completion

SEOUL, Oct. 15 (Yonhap) -- North Korea and China officially inaugurated a new cross-border bridge Thursday, 12 years after its completion, a development that experts say will bolster cross-border exchanges and trade between the two nations. The bridge, spanning the Amnok River (also known as the Yalu River), links Sinuiju in North Korea with Dandong in China. Chinese Premier Li Qiang and North Korean counterpart Pak Thae-song participated in the opening ceremony via video conference.

Li hailed the bridge as a "key cross-border infrastructure" championed by Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, noting it would "strongly facilitate" economic and trade cooperation between the two countries. He underscored the significance of the June summit agreements, pledging to implement them and elevate bilateral relations to a strategic level.

Pak also delivered remarks at the ceremony, although their contents remain undisclosed by Xinhua, the Chinese state-run news agency.

The bridge's construction, initiated in 2010 and completed in 2014, was initially halted due to the lack of infrastructure on the North Korean side. Spanning 28.5 meters, the four-lane motorway can accommodate vessels up to 3,000 tons. The bridge's deck is designed to ease congestion on the existing Friendship Bridge, which has been the primary crossing since its 1943 opening. The Friendship Bridge, however, could only accommodate trucks weighing up to 20 tons for one-way road traffic.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning earlier stated that the new bridge would further enhance trade and people-to-people exchanges. He added that the bridge is an "important facility for connectivity between the two countries," as Dandong is China's largest border trade port with North Korea.