New China–North Korea Yalu River Bridge Opens to Traffic

Dragon Media News Desk

A new bridge over the Yalu River between China and North Korea opened to traffic on Thursday. The two countries held a joint ceremony to inaugurate the bridge, an important cross-border link.

The cable-stayed bridge connects Dandong in China’s Liaoning Province with Sinuiju in North Korea’s North Pyongan Province. Its 28.5-metre-wide deck has four lanes for two-way traffic. The bridge provides clearance for vessels of up to 3,000 tonnes to pass beneath it.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Wednesday that the new bridge would further facilitate trade and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries. She said it was important infrastructure for connectivity between China and North Korea, which she described as friendly neighbours linked by mountains and rivers.

In a video address at the opening ceremony, Chinese Premier Li Qiang called the bridge a new symbol of traditional friendship between the two countries. He said they should use it to improve customs clearance, strengthen connectivity and cooperation in border areas, and improve the well-being of their peoples.

Dandong is China’s largest border trade port with North Korea. Before the new bridge was built, the China–North Korea Friendship Bridge over the Yalu River carried both road and rail traffic. However, its road section could accommodate only one-way traffic and trucks weighing no more than 20 tonnes.

China and North Korea agreed in 2010 to build a new road bridge downstream from the existing one. The new bridge is expected to increase cross-border transport capacity and expand trade and people-to-people exchanges.