Amid indications that China is planning to increase its investment in North Korea sharply, it is vital to distinguish fact from hype. One confirmed project is a new US$258m road bridge over the Yalu river, which lies on the border of the two countries, between Dandong in China and Sinuiju in North Korea. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on December 31st, and construction may take three years. The bridge will run west of the existing narrow one built in 1937 by the Japanese, which is congested and cannot take trucks heavier than 20 tonnes. It may also carry a new and more modern railway link.

When the bridge is completed, it will have at least two knock-on effects. South Sinuiju, already a nominal special economic zone, will finally see some development. Astonishingly, there is no modern highway southwards from Sinuiju to Pyongyang, and so this will be remedied-probably, as is the case for the new bridge, with China footing the bill. All this will help to open up North Korea's interior. The project has been slightly delayed, but Chinese sources have denied vehemently the suggestions from South Korean sources that this is because of the North's security concerns about opening a route for the Chinese to its capital.