The construction of North Korea marks the reopening of the border with China

North Korea is transforming its airstrip into an air-raid ports, which analysts say could trigger a resumption of trade with China and reduce US hopes that a financial crisis could force Pyongyang to return to the nuclear talks table.

The satellite images of the Center for Strategic and International Studies viewed by the Financial Times show construction work in Uiju, near the North Korean border with northwest China, after two years of isolation and economic hardship.

North Korea closed its borders with China and Russia in January 2020 in response to the coronavirus epidemic, which forced many foreign workers and ambassadors to evacuate. The country has just done it small business at sea with China, and a major trading partner.

North Korea is also facing challenges due to international sanctions and a food problem, following poor harvest and crop degradation from hot waves and flooding.

The government says it will recorded zero Covid-19 cases, which health experts around the world have failed to confirm because they have been denied access to treatment or vaccinations.

“The length and completeness of the closure is a manifestation of the horror [Pyongyang is] about the spread of the virus, “says Victor Cha, Korea’s chairman for CSIS.”

Despite reports of famine across the country, the Kim government has disrupted observers’ efforts to curb economic segregation more than they think. a list of international sanctions was designed to force Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear and weapons programs.

“There has never been a more convincing sanctions against the North Korean government than this closure, and this casts doubt on the idea that squeezing it as hard as we can and sanctions could enable them to completely eliminate nuclear weapons,” Cha said.

South Korea has pushing the US to help ease sanctions, as China and Russia recently issued a UN Security Council request for abolition.

“If you are a person who believes in punishments, then these pictures will show you that the western engagement window can close,” added Cha. “If they receive more aid from China, they will force the government to release it.”

Uiju’s land reform project began in March after North Korean authorities passed a law banning the killing of pathogens in order to establish a “system and system for killing pathogens in border crossings”.

“Maritime trade has been going on for months, but if you have trains crossing the border and going to this place every day, you can have trains from there to Pyongyang, which increases the volume of foreign goods,” said Colin Zwirko, an inspector. senior at Seoul-based information service NK Pro.

He also noted that North Korean authorities appear to be rebuilding the same territory on the border with Russia.

The South Korean National Intelligence Service recently told lawmakers that Pyongyang is working with China and Russia to re-cross the railway line, according to lawmakers who attended the meeting.