An international passenger train linking China and North Korea began service on the 12th. This is about six years since North Korea sealed its borders in 2020 because of COVID-19.
According to Japan's Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) on this day, an eight-car train that departed from Dandong in Liaoning province in northeastern China for Pyongyang crossed the Yalu River Bridge (Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge) at around 10 a.m. local time. The Yalu River Bridge connects the two countries' border.
Nikkei said the train had "Dandong-Pyongyang" written in Chinese and Korean. According to the report, the Dandong-Pyongyang route will run daily starting this day.
In the afternoon, a passenger train from Pyongyang to Beijing was also spotted passing through the Yalu River Bridge. The train from Beijing to Pyongyang also resumed service that afternoon. The Beijing-Pyongyang train operates four times a week in both directions.
However, the North Korea-China passenger trains currently in operation appear to be carrying diplomats and businesspeople rather than general tourists.