Border visit follows years of delay
South Korea's Unification Ministry and China's Xinhua News Agency said Kim entered Dandong across the New Yalu River Bridge. He and Wang, a member of the Chinese Communist Party's Standing Committee, visited a car factory and committed to closer bilateral ties.
North Korea "stands ready to work with China to carry forward their historical friendship and expand practical cooperation, thereby delivering tangible benefits to the peoples of both countries," Xinhua quoted Kim as saying. Wang later escorted him back to the bridge for his departure. North Korean state media did not immediately cover the visit.
Kim's Oct. 24 crossing came nine days after the bridge officially opened to vehicles. Although construction was completed in 2014, the span sat unused for about 12 years because connecting roads and customs facilities on the North Korean side were unfinished.
The formal opening on Oct. 15 featured recorded video addresses from Chinese Premier Li Qiang and North Korean Premier Pak Thae Song, followed by a parade of trucks from both countries. The crossing is designated for cargo; regular passenger services remain on the older Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge, by bus or rail.
More capacity for trade
Linking Dandong with Sinuiju, North Korea, the four-lane, cable-stayed bridge stretches roughly 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) and reportedly cost China about $350 million. It was built to replace the Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge, constructed between 1937 and 1943 during Japan's occupation. That older crossing has one rail track and a single reversible road lane and cannot accommodate trucks weighing more than 20 metric tons.
Experts described the new crossing as a sign of closer relations and an effort to increase trade. It is expected to handle traffic in both directions around the clock, including containers and heavy cargo trucks.
Trade between China and North Korea totaled $2.7 billion in 2025, returning to pre-pandemic levels largely on the strength of Chinese exports, according to the BBC. Passenger connections have also resumed: Air China restored direct Beijing-Pyongyang flights in March 2026 after a six-year pandemic-related suspension, and passenger trains between the countries returned that same month.
Beijing and Moscow ties
The trip comes as Kim pursues a more assertive foreign policy, seeking to align North Korea with China and Russia against the United States in what he calls a "new Cold War." After spending years giving priority to Moscow, he has recently worked to reinforce relations with Beijing, North Korea's longtime principal ally and economic lifeline.
Chinese President Xi Jinping met Kim in Pyongyang in June during Xi's first state visit of 2026, the BBC reported. Saturday's trip was Kim's sixth to China since he succeeded his father in late 2011.
The timing appeared intended to emphasize the relationship before the Oct. 25 anniversary of China's first major Korean War victory. That victory came days after Chinese troops entered North Korea across the Yalu River in October 1950. Kim said honoring those killed in the war was another purpose of his visit, according to Xinhua.
The visit also preceded Monday's fifth plenary session of the Communist Party's Central Committee in Beijing, where Xi and other senior officials were scheduled to gather, DW reported.
Kim has supplied thousands of troops and conventional weapons for Russian President Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine, possibly in return for military and economic support. Transport links with Russia have expanded as well. In September, about a month before the China crossing opened, North Korea and Russia opened their first road bridge. According to the BBC, Russian state media put its potential daily capacity at up to 300 vehicles and more than 2,000 people.
Talks with the US remain stalled
Closer ties with Beijing have not been accompanied by an easing of Kim's position toward Seoul. He has also so far rejected US President Donald Trump's offer to restart diplomacy, which collapsed in 2019 during Trump's first term. North Korea says Washington must end its "hostile policy" and withdraw its denuclearization demands before talks can resume.
South Korea's liberal government supports engagement and hopes a renewed US-North Korea dialogue would improve relations between the two Koreas. It has also asked China to take a "constructive" role in addressing the impasse.
Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul, said a North Korean shift toward economic development rather than military expansion and threats would benefit diplomacy and security from Seoul's perspective. But greater benefits from China and Russia could leave Seoul with little to offer that would outweigh Pyongyang's perceived political risks of engaging with a richer, more globalized and freer South Korea, he said.
