China-North Korea bridge to open after 12-year delay

The four-lane bridge was completed in 2014, but its opening was delayed by a lack of connecting roads and customs facilities. (EPA Images pic) BEIJING: A new bridge linking China and North Korea will open this week, Chinese state media reported Wednesday, 12 years after its construction, in another sign of deepening economic relations between the Asian giant and its poor neighbour.

The New Yalu River vehicle bridge, which will open on Thursday according to state broadcaster CCTV, links China's northeastern border city of Dandong to one of the most isolated countries in the world.

The four-lane structure spanning 3,026 metres (9,927 feet) was completed in 2014 but saw its opening delayed due to issues such as the lack of connecting roads and customs facilities on the North Korean side, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported.

China is North Korea's largest trading partner and a vital source of diplomatic, economic and political support for the reclusive nuclear state.

North Korea sealed its borders during the Covid-19 pandemic, and train journeys between the East Asian neighbours only restarted in March after a six-year halt.

The new bridge is intended as an alternative to the decades-old Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge, which was once regularly used by passenger trains but has limited capacity.

"Until now, exchanges across the Yalu River bridges in Dandong have been relatively limited in scale, but once the new bridge opens, hundreds of vehicles could cross it every day," Ahn Chan-il, a researcher originally from North Korea, told AFP.

"The bridge could become a conduit for China's abundant goods and resources to flow into North Korea and give its economy a significant boost," he added.

South Korea's unification ministry told AFP that Seoul is "closely monitoring" the situation regarding the bridge's opening.

North Korea has not yet resumed issuing tourism visas to Chinese citizens, who once made up the bulk of its overseas visitors.

The opening of the New Yalu River Bridge comes just over a month after North Korea and Russia opened their first road bridge, with Pyongyang lauding it as a sign of tightening relations.

While North Korea's trade with Russia largely involves military supplies, exchanges with China could arguably involve goods that North Korea needs the most to develop its civilian economy, analysts say.