Kim Jong-un crosses newly opened bridge into China

Kim Jong-un has visited China, inaugurating a bridge that connects the two countries and saying he hopes to expand cooperation with his neighbour.

The North Korean leader arrived in the Chinese border city of Dandong on Saturday after crossing the New Yalu River Bridge, according to South Korea’s unification ministry, which handles affairs related to North Korea, and China’s official Xinhua news agency. He met Wang Huning, a member of the standing committee of China’s Communist party. The pair toured a car factory, and promised to strengthen the bilateral relationship.

The visit appears to be timed to underscore the strength of Kim’s ties with Beijing ahead of the 25 October anniversary of China’s first major victory in the Korean war, which came days after Chinese troops crossed the Yalu River into North Korea in October 1950.Traffic controls had been imposed around the bridge and near a museum about China’s role in the war, and that hotel bookings nearby had been restricted.

The trip is Kim’s sixth visit to China and his first since September 2025, when he attended a military parade in Beijing alongside the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, and Vladimir Putin. Xi visited Pyongyang in June, his first trip there in seven years. North Korea’s relations with South Korea, meanwhile, have deteriorated; Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, has issued about 10 statements criticising Seoul since late September, a frequency South Korea’s unification ministry has called unusual, and has also announced plans to resume loudspeaker broadcasts at the border within days.