N. Korea opens diplomatic mission in Chinese border city

BEIJING, Jan. 11 (Yonhap) -- North Korea has recently opened a consulate branch
office in Dandong, a major Chinese city bordering North Korea, displaying its
intention to reinforce bilateral trade relations with China, a source here said
Sunday.
"The North Korean consulate-general in Shenyang recently established its branch
office in Dandong and dispatched personnel there," said the source.
"The move signals the North's intention to increase its product procurement from
China through brisker border trade and strengthen its consular affairs amid a
growing North Korean population in the Chinese border city."
Dandong, a city in the Chinese province of Liaoning, is situated right across the
Yalu River from Sinuiju in the northwestern part of North Korea. Approximately 70
percent of trade between North Korea and China is conducted through the
Dandong-Sinuiju route.
According to the source, the North Korean consulate branch office is the first
foreign diplomatic mission to open in Dandong, which has a population of about
650,000.
Bilateral trade and cooperation via Dandong are expected to further grow as China
and North Korea are to celebrate the 60th anniversary of their diplomatic
relations in 2009 and launch a joint "Year of Friendship." Two-way trade is
estimated to have topped US$2 billion last year.
(END)