At N.K.-China border, a fence goes up

Posted on : 2006-10-16 12:33 KST Modified on : 2006-10-16 12:33 KST
After North’s test, strained relations with its ’ally’

On October 15, beside a railway bridge on the Aprok (Yalu) River in the Chinese border city of Dandong, tourists bustled around as usual. Across the bridge, the faces of North Koreans seen in the city of Shineuiju were far from grim. North Korean soldiers, who were fishing at the river, waved their hands and smiled. Dressed in their Sunday finest, a North Korean family was seen boating down the river.

However, as Chinese authorities are reportedly building barbed-wire fences along the border with North Korea following Pyongyang’s October 9 announcement that it had performed a nuclear weapons test, residents in Dandong are concerned about a possible rift between North Korea and China, and any ramifications that might be felt in their city, which is dependent on cross-border trade.

A fence between neighbors

Immediately after North Korea’s announcement of its nuclear test, a barbed-wire fence was erected in a suburb located some 20 km northeast of Dandong. This is the first time China has built a barbed wire fence in its border with North Korea. The fence is seen as meant to prevent North Koreans from defecting to China.

A 52-year-old Chinese resident in the area, who only identified himself by the surname Cheon, said, "A platoon of Chinese soldiers built the barbed-wire fence near the Yalu River, northeast of Dandong city."

The fence is made of 2.5-meter-high T-shaped concrete poles strung with wire fencing. It was constructed by a part of the river with lower banks and narrower width, indicating that it is indeed a measure to stop North Koreans from defecting to China.

So far, the fence only stretches some 20 km along the river. Cheon said the Chinese authorities may build another barbed wire fence. On October 15, I saw a 1-km line of the T-shaped concrete poles without wire along another part of the border, apparently the start of a similar such fence in the border region near the North Korean town of Wehwado.

No more cash transfers?

After North Korea’s nuclear test, another mystery has arisen in Dandong, the locus of trade between China and North Korea. On October 13, Chinese banks in Dandong said they would not provide cash transfer services to and from North Korea. A South Korean businessman in Beijing, who operates a trade business with North Korea via Dandong, confirmed that “cash transfers to North Korea from Dandong are not available.”

In addition, a 35-year-old Chinese man, who has been doing transactions with Pyongyang for more than 10 years after investing in North Korea’s mining industry, said on October 15, "A Chinese bank in Dandong rejected sending US$20,000 to Pyonyang, without giving any explanation. The bank only said that transactions were suspended as of 8:00 a.m. on October 13."

So far, people who conduct trade with North Korea have made transactions with North Korean banks via Chinese banks. According to them, dollar transactions between North Korean and Chinese banks had halted since September last year, when North Korean accounts at a Macau-based bank were frozen.

Responding to the alleged abrupt suspension of cash transfer services, speculation circulated in Dandong that China may impose strong sanctions against North Korea due to its nuclear test. However, a Dandong city official who is in charge of trade affairs, said, "I have not heard that China has halted financial transactions with North Korea in order to take a tough sanction against the North following its nuclear test. There is a possibility that China may stop financial transactions as a temporary and unofficial measure to teach a lesson to North Korea."

Last year, North Korea’s foreign trade totaled US$3.01 billion. Trade with China accounted for US$1.58 billion of this. Annual trade volume in Dandong, the most important channel for North Korea-China trade, was valued at US$200 million. However, a significant number of businessmen working with the North via Dandong did not report their transactions, meaning that Dandong’s contribution is significantly higher. If China has indeed halted financial transactions between Dandong and North Korea, it would deal a severe blow to the North.

This article by Lee Sang-su, reporter for the Hankyoreh

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