North Korea-China bridge nears opening after decade-long delay
The completion of North Korean customs facilities was seen as a signal that the New Yalu River Bridge may open soon, potentially boosting the country's cross-border cargo trade with China.
The New Yalu River Bridge linking Dandong, China, and Sinuiju, North Korea, is seen on Sept. 8.YONHAP
The New Yalu River Bridge linking North Korea and China could finally open after more than a decade of delays, potentially boosting trade between the two sides.
“North Korea and China appear close to finally opening a border crossing that has been under development for more than a decade,” U.S. media 38 North said Thursday, referring to the New Yalu River Bridge.
The outlet cited recent commercial satellite imagery from Planet Labs, saying “a recent surge in construction on the North Korean side has ended, and the new customs facility appears complete.” While Chinese customs facilities were completed some time ago, North Korea's have only recently been completed.
The bridge connects the North Korean border city of Sinuiju with Dandong in China's Liaoning region. Construction began under an economic and technological cooperation agreement signed during then-Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to North Korea in October 2009, marking the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between North Korea and China.
The project was intended to address logistics bottlenecks and safety concerns surrounding the narrow and aging Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge, which opened in 1943.
China invested around 2.2 billion yuan ($328 million) in the project, breaking ground in late 2011 and completing construction in 2014. Its opening, however, was delayed as North Korea put off construction of connecting roads leading toward Sinuiju and customs facilities without providing a clear explanation.
A work vehicle crosses the New Yalu River Bridge linking Dandong, China, with Sinuiju, North Korea, on Sept. 8.YONHAP
The Dandong-Sinuiju route is the largest overland trade hub between North Korea and China, and accounts for around 70 percent of bilateral trade, and could boost trade when the bridge opens.
“The bridge is expected to become the main crossing point for cargo trucks traveling between China and North Korea,” 38 North said in its report. “Currently, trucks cross the aging Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge traveling between the center of Dandong and Sinuiju. The new crossing has larger cargo processing capacity on both sides of the river and means trucks won’t clog up the city centers of Dandong and Sinuiju.”
The Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge has a single-lane roadway running alongside a railway. But the New Yalu River Bridge has no railway tracks, meaning rail traffic is expected to continue using the existing bridge.
“North Korea appears to be moving to secure the New Yalu River Bridge, following its road bridge project with Russia,” said Jeong Yu-seok, a research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification. “There is a strong possibility that North Korea will use improvements in logistics infrastructure with China and Russia as a tool to undermine existing international sanctions against the country.”
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
