China and North Korea have officially opened the New Yalu River Bridge, China’s state-run Xinhua news agency reports.

In a video address at the opening ceremony on Thursday, China’s Premier Li Qiang said relations between the two countries “are entering a new stage and opening a new chapter”, Xinhua reported.

Li said the cross-border infrastructure project was championed by Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Li said the bridge’s opening will strongly promote bilateral economic and trade cooperation while also further strengthening people-to-people exchanges and the emotional bonds between the two countries.

China completed its side of the bridge in 2014, hoping to boost trade ties. However, North Korea left its side unfinished for years as relations soured after Beijing supported United Nations sanctions over Pyongyang’s nuclear tests.

The first bridge connecting Russia and North Korea opened earlier this month.

China-North Korea relations  

China’s exports to North Korea rose to a six-year high of $2.3bn last year, 25 percent up from the previous year. Xi was welcomed in Pyongyang in June for the first time since 2019.

Since 2018, Beijing has tried to repair ties with Pyongyang, which also briefly began improving relations with Washington around the same time.

The China-North Korea relationship was forged during the Korean War. In 1961, the two countries signed the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, which remains China’s only formal military alliance.

The treaty contains a mutual defence clause committing either side to assist the other if one comes under armed attack.

Although China was North Korea’s main diplomatic partner and protector for decades, relations strained after Beijing in 2017 supported tightening sanctions on Pyongyang for its nuclear weapons programme.

Analysts say North Korea’s recent growing relationship with Russia may have changed the balance of Pyongyang’s diplomatic dependence, reducing its reliance on Beijing.

North Korea and Russia signed a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty in 2024, including a mutual defence provision. Military and political ties between the two countries have grown considerably stronger, with North Korea deploying thousands of troops to fight in Russia’s war on Ukraine.

United States President Donald Trump also signalled interest in repairing relations with Pyongyang last month, after his talks with Kim abruptly ended in 2019. In his second term, Trump has floated meeting Kim again, though no official meeting has been set.

North Korea has not yet resumed issuing tourism visas to Chinese citizens, who once made up the bulk of its overseas visitors.

While North Korea’s trade with Russia largely involves military supplies, exchanges with China could involve goods North Korea needs to develop its civilian economy, according to analysts.