The New Yalu River Bridge (Chinese: 新鸭绿江大桥), or Korea-China Amnok River Bridge (Korean: 조중압록강다리), is a road bridge across the Amnok River between Dandong, Liaoning Province, China, and Sinuiju, North Korea. The cable-stayed bridge, which is 3 kilometers (1.9 mi) long including the supporting roads, is intended as a replacement for the Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge.[1] Construction began in October 2011[2] and is mostly complete and connected with Xingdan Road, but the project stalled between 2014 and 2019, with work unfinished on the North Korean side.[3][4] By 2021, construction on the North Korean side has been mostly completed, with the bridge being expected to open soon.[5]
New Yalu River Bridge | |
|---|---|
 New Yalu River Bridge in September 2016 | |
| Coordinates | 40°2′8″N 124°22′10″E / 40.03556°N 124.36944°E |
| Carries | Road traffic |
| Crosses | Amnok River |
| Locale | Dandong, Liaoning, China Sinŭiju, North P'yŏngan, North Korea |
| Official name | 新鸭绿江大桥 (Chinese) 조중압록강다리 (Korean) |
| Other name(s) | Korea-China Amnok River Bridge |
| Characteristics | |
| Total length | 3 km (9,800 ft) |
| History | |
| Construction start | October 2011 |
| Location | |
 | |
Construction history
editThe New Yalu River Bridge was built as a replacement for the Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge, one of two other bridges in the area, to improve travel and trade between the two countries. The Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge, which opened in 1943, is only wide enough for a single rail track and a single reversible lane. It also cannot carry trucks over 20 tonnes.[1]
Plans to build the New Yalu River Bridge were approved by North Korea during a visit of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao to the country in 2010.[6] The bridge would be part of a development project including free trade zones on North Korean islands in the Yalu river.[7]
Construction of the New Yalu River Bridge began in 2011, reportedly cost China US$350 million to complete,[8] and has multiple lanes to carry traffic in both directions.[3]
It was originally planned to open in 2014, but due to delays on the North Korean side, the opening has been postponed indefinitely, as the bridge ended in a field outside of Sinuiju, North Korea.[9] In October 2017, Yonhap reported that North Korea has demanded that "Beijing to cover more of the costs of building the border bridge".[10]
In June 2019, Chinese Communist Party general secretary Xi Jinping pledged to pay for roads and customs posts on the North Korean side of the bridge, according to unnamed sources.[11]
In late September 2019, the construction for road links and customs posts on the North Korean side of the bridge began.[12][4] By April 2020 the project was reportedly near completion.[13] In mid-August 2020, the project was stopped again.[14] In October 2020, the project works restarted again.[15]
According to sources cited by South Korean newspaper Dong-a Ilbo, the works were planned to be completed during the first half of 2020, but delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[16] In October 2021, Yonhap reported that the bridge ramps on the Korean side were completed since, and that the bridge would be opened soon, as North Korea would restart border trade.[5]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "中朝新鸭绿江大桥实现合龙预计2014年通车". www.gov.cn. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
- ^ New Yalu River Bridge (Hudong Encyclopedia) (in Chinese)
- ^ a b Lee, Nathaniel (5 May 2017). "China built a $350 million bridge that ends in a dirt field in North Korea". Business Insider.
- ^ a b "Work continues on DPRK side to connect long-stalled cross-border bridge with China". 8 October 2019.
- ^ a b 전인경 (11 April 2021). "消息：朝中边境或于月内解封 | 韩联社". 韩联社（韩国联合通讯社） (in Chinese). Retrieved 6 October 2021.
- ^ "Bridge to nowhere?". The Korea Times. 13 November 2016. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
- ^ "China's Embrace of North Korea: The Curious Case of the Hwanggumpyong Island Economic Zone". 38 North. 20 February 2012. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
- ^ Talmadge, Eric (17 November 2014). "china's $350m bridge gets scant North Korean welcome". Associated Press – via Aiken Standard.
- ^ Joseph, Devan (19 November 2014). "China Just Built A Massive $350 Million Bridge That Ends In A Dirt Field In North Korea". Business Insider. Associated Press.
- ^ "Report: North Korea soldier has no recollection of daring escape". UPI. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
- ^ Hirai, Yoshikazu (29 July 2019). "China to fund costs so bridge to North Korea can open to traffic". Asahi Shimbun. Archived from the original on 7 November 2020.
- ^ Zwirko, Colin (26 September 2019). "Homes demolished in path of long-stalled Sino-DPRK "bridge to nowhere": imagery". NK Pro. Retrieved 16 November 2019.
- ^ "N. KOREA PREPARES BRIDGE CONNECTING WITH CHINA / KBS뉴스(News)". YouTube. 27 April 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ Zwirko, Colin (25 September 2020). "Work on China-DPRK 'bridge to nowhere' stops amid new COVID-19 border controls". NK News. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
- ^ Zwirko, Colin (30 October 2020). "China-DPRK 'bridge to nowhere' closer to opening as highway work restarts". NK News. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ "新鸭绿江大桥为6年来首次开通"加速"". www.donga.com (in Chinese (China)). 4 May 2020. Retrieved 6 October 2021.