China-North Korea bridge opens after 12-year delay
The New Yalu River Bridge connecting the Chinese city of Dandong to North Korea's Sinuiju officially opened on Thursday, more than a decade after construction was completed. The opening came as relations between Beijing and Pyongyang have begun to improve, though the bridge had been repeatedly postponed since 2014 when North Korea halted work on connecting infrastructure. While analysts acknowledge the strategic importance of the route, they suggest that trade growth will remain limited due to ongoing United Nations sanctions against North Korea.
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The New Yalu River Bridge, a three-kilometre crossing linking the Chinese border city of Dandong to Sinuiju in North Korea, officially opened on Thursday after a delay of more than twelve years following the completion of construction. The bridge is designed to become the primary overland trade route between the two countries, replacing the older Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge that was built during Japan's occupation of the peninsula.
The bridge's opening had been postponed multiple times since 2014, when North Korea stopped work on the roads and customs facilities required to connect to it during a period when ties between Beijing and Pyongyang were tense. At the opening ceremony, Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivered a video address describing the bridge as a new landmark symbolising the traditional friendship between the two nations. North Korean cabinet chief Pak Thae Song also addressed the ceremony, which was attended by crowds carrying flags of both countries.
China remains North Korea's largest trading partner and an essential economic support given the heavy international sanctions imposed over North Korea's nuclear weapons programme. Bilateral trade between the two countries reached 2.7 billion dollars last year. Nevertheless, analysts have warned that a significant increase in cross-border commerce is unlikely in the short term, as United Nations sanctions continue and North Korea itself remains cautious about becoming overly dependent on its larger neighbour economically.
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