China-North Korea rail services restored as neighbours try to get relations back on track

China will resume passenger train services to North Korea for the first time in six years – the latest sign of warming ties between the two countries as Pyongyang grapples with increasing tensions with the South and Donald Trump’s unpredictability.

The first service between Beijing and Pyongyang is scheduled to leave the Chinese capital at around 5.30pm on Thursday and arrive in North Korea at around 6.15pm the following day, according to a staff member from China International Travel Services (CITS), which is responsible for ticket sales on international rail links.

In future, four train services are scheduled to run from Beijing every week – on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday. Details of the return services have not yet been made available.

The employee added that passengers would have to present a valid North Korean visa and a copy of their passport to buy tickets from the CITS headquarters in Beijing.

Allowing tourism from the country to resume has been widely seen as a test of Pyongyang’s willingness to revive economic ties with Beijing, its largest trading partner.

South China Morning Post