A local daily in China's Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture says that a highway has opened to link two cities in the region, Tumen and Hunchun. This area near the Tumen River is a strategic foothold for North Korean and Chinese trade.

The 62-point-seven kilometer expressway cost 577 billion won and three years to build. The travel time between the two cities takes only 40 minutes.

Now that the transport hubs of northwestern China, Changchun and Yanji are linked to Tumen and Hunchun, which is the gateway city to North Korea and Russia, the development of the Tumen River area is expected to pick up speed.