By Benjamin Katzeff Silberstein
On September 26, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry officially stated that railroad traffic between China and North Korea would restart yet again, after the brief opening and sudden cancellation five months ago. The same say, a freight train crossing the border was caught on video. Bloomberg:
Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said Monday at a regular press briefing in Beijing the cargo rail link between the China and North Korea is reopening, after service was halted in April as part of measures to control Covid.
“The two sides will continue to strengthen coordination to ensure the steady and secure transport of goods, and contribute to friendly relations between China and the DPRK,” Wang said, referring to North Korea by its formal name.
The rail connection between the city of Dandong in China and Sinuiju in North Korea is Kim’s main link to China, his country’s biggest trading partner by far. Reopening the trade route could take pressure off Kim to return to stalled nuclear disarmament talks with the U.S., where the Biden administration is dangling the prospects financial rewards in exchange for steps to wind down its atomic arsenal.
The link was closed in 2020 near the start of the pandemic when Kim shut the borders to prevent the coronavirus from entering, and was briefly reopened in January of this year. Video on social media on Monday showed a freight train that appeared to be crossing from the Chinese side into North Korea.
(Source: “China, North Korea Restore Rail Link on Kim’s Key Trade Route,” Bloomberg News, September 26th, 2022.)
Tags: Corona
