BEIJING, October 15, 2026 (DAILYNWZ) — China and North Korea opened a long-delayed bridge linking their border cities on Thursday, creating a new route for trade and transport as the neighbours seek to strengthen ties after years of pandemic disruption and strained relations.
Trucks decorated with the two countries’ national flags crossed the 3-kilometre New Yalu River Bridge, connecting Dandong in China’s Liaoning province with Sinuiju in North Korea. The bridge, completed in 2014, had remained unused for more than a decade because North Korea had not finished the approach roads and customs facilities needed to put it into service.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang said in a video address that bilateral relations were entering “a new phase” and “a new chapter”, according to China’s state news agency Xinhua. The bridge, he said, would promote economic and trade cooperation, encourage exchanges between the two peoples and improve border clearance and connectivity.
North Korean Premier Pak Thae Song also delivered a video address, Xinhua reported. North Korean state media had not reported the opening by the time of publication.
The ceremony marks another sign of warming ties between Beijing and Pyongyang following two summits between their leaders over the past year. But analysts cautioned that the new crossing was unlikely to trigger an immediate return to the levels of trade seen before tighter international sanctions.
“The bridge is unlikely to lead immediately to a full-scale return to pre-sanctions trade,” said Lim Eul-chul of Kyungnam University’s Institute for Far Eastern Studies. It could nevertheless facilitate the movement of heavy equipment, raw materials and energy products needed for North Korea’s development, he said.
China remains North Korea’s largest trading partner, despite United Nations sanctions imposed over Pyongyang’s missile and nuclear weapons programmes. China and Russia, both permanent members of the UN Security Council that backed sanctions resolutions through 2017, have since questioned the legitimacy and effectiveness of the restrictions.
The bridge’s opening also carries economic significance for Dandong, whose business activity benefited from its role as North Korea’s main trade gateway in the early 2000s. The delay had been a setback for the Chinese border city.
Until Thursday, most cross-border goods moved over an older bridge about 10 kilometres upstream. The 83-year-old structure carries a railway and a single-lane road and remains the busiest of roughly 15 crossing points along the countries’ 1,350-kilometre border.
Residents in Dandong welcomed the opening, hoping it would bring renewed activity and visitors. One resident, a 50-year-old surnamed He, said he was happy to see the bridge open after more than a decade of waiting. Another, surnamed Xie, predicted the area would become livelier and attract more tourists.
China’s exports to North Korea rose 25% last year to $2.3 billion, their highest level in six years, although they remained well below levels recorded before sanctions were tightened in 2017.
A South Korean Unification Ministry official described the opening as the first visible implementation of agreements reached at a June summit. Seoul was monitoring whether it would lead to further practical steps as Beijing and Pyongyang pursue a closer strategic partnership, the official said.