China and North Korea have opened a long-delayed road bridge across their border, highlighting closer ties as Pyongyang seeks to ease its economic isolation through stronger relations with Beijing and Moscow.
The New Yalu River Bridge links the Chinese city of Dandong with Sinuiju in North Korea. A launch ceremony was held on Thursday, China’s official Xinhua news agency reported.
State media footage showed trucks carrying the national flags of both countries lined up on the four-lane crossing, which was decorated with Chinese and North Korean flags.
In a video address, Chinese Premier Li Qiang described the bridge as a “new landmark” in the countries’ “traditional friendship”. He urged both sides to use it to improve connectivity and pursue further co-operation in their border regions.
North Korean Premier Pak Thae Song also delivered a video message, though no further details of his remarks were given.
The 3km bridge is expected to reduce pressure on the ageing Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge, which carries both rail traffic and vehicles but can handle only one-way traffic at a time.
More than 70 per cent of official trade between China and North Korea currently passes through that older crossing, according to Chinese data. South Korean authorities have counted at least 17 active road and rail links along the 1,400km border between North Korea and China.
