Kim Jong Un Crosses Into China on New Bridge
North Korea's leader made an unannounced one-day trip to the Chinese border city of Dandong over a newly opened bridge, met one of China's top leaders and was hosted at a banquet held at Xi Jinping's direction, weeks before Trump is due in China.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un crossed into China over the New Yalu River Bridge, which opened this month, for an unannounced one-day visit to the border city of Dandong. It was his first known trip to China since September 2025 and his sixth since taking power in 2011.
He was met by Wang Huning, the fourth-ranking official in China's Communist Party, who passed on President Xi Jinping's "cordial greetings" and hosted a banquet that North Korean state media said was held at Xi's direction. The two visited a vehicle factory and a memorial to Chinese soldiers who fought in the Korean War. Kim said North Korea would keep up the countries' "invincible friendship forged in blood." China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, also took part. There was no report of a meeting with Xi.
The bridge, 3,026 meters long and four lanes wide, was finished in 2014 with about $310 million from China but sat unused for years while North Korea's side lacked roads and customs posts. China hosts the APEC summit in Shenzhen next month, where President Trump is expected. He has said he hopes to meet Kim; Pyongyang has not responded.
Dandong, China — North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Un, crossed into China over a newly opened bridge for a brief, unannounced visit, his first trip to the country in about a year, and was received by one of Beijing's most senior leaders.
The visit
Kim crossed the Yalu River, called the Amnok in Korea, on the New Yalu River Bridge from the North Korean city of Sinuiju to Dandong, according to South Korean government sources cited by Yonhap. Neither government announced the trip in advance. China's Xinhua news agency said Kim met Wang Huning, a member of the Communist Party's top body, the Politburo Standing Committee, and chairman of China's top political advisory body. Wang conveyed Xi Jinping's "cordial greetings and best wishes" and saw Kim off at the bridge when he went home the same day.
North Korea's state news agency, KCNA, said Kim paid tribute at a memorial to Chinese soldiers who fought in the 1950-53 Korean War, visited a bus factory and attended a banquet Wang hosted "at the direction of" Xi. Kim said North Korea would continue to uphold the two countries' "invincible friendship forged in blood." Wang said the visit mattered for "deepening political mutual trust and jointly pursuing cooperation and development." China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, also took part. A South Korean lawmaker, Youn Kun-young, said Kim was understood to have met Premier Li Qiang as well; Chinese state media did not report such a meeting.
The visit came a day before the date both countries mark as the anniversary of China's entry into the Korean War. It was Kim's sixth trip to China since he took power in 2011. His last, in September 2025, took him to Beijing for a World War II anniversary parade and talks with Xi, and Xi visited Pyongyang in June.
The bridge
The four-lane bridge, 3,026 meters long, was completed in 2014 with about $310 million in Chinese money, according to Yonhap, but did not open until this month because North Korea had not finished the connecting roads and customs facilities on its side. Both governments say it should increase cross-border trade. China is North Korea's largest trading partner and its main diplomatic backer. The opening came just over a month after North Korea and Russia opened their first road bridge.
The American angle
China hosts the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen next month, and President Trump is expected to attend. Trump has said he hopes to hold talks with Kim, but Pyongyang has not responded. North Korea has also built close military ties with Russia during the war in Ukraine.