As China, the U.S., Russia, South Korea and Japan are all calling and working for peaceful solution to the crisis on the Korean Peninsula, the only uncertainty is the the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).
There is no fast track when it comes to doing trade with the DPRK. Crossing the border may only take five minutes, but it takes hours to deal with the bureaucracy and the paper work.
But that doesn't stop DPRK businessmen from flocking to China's railway station. Ordinary Chinese goods are novelties in the DPRK. They buy whatever they can get and transport it back home, the old-fashioned way.
Although Pyongyang has closed the Kaesong Industrial Park and is threatening to launch a nuclear war, an encouraging sign of peace is that the country is still willing to maintain economic contact with the outside.
And on the Chinese side of the border, many private companies are willing partners.
This fish processing company has been trading with Pyongyang for nearly a decade. It's developed from a small workshop into a multinational company.
The booming assembly lines produce fish jerky. Most of it is exported to the DPRK.
As tensions are escalating on the Korean Peninsula, border trade business is by no means declining. The assembly lines are busy, and workers are working overtime to finish the rising orders from the DPRK. The manager said the booming trade on the border was helping stabilize the situation.
"There are a lot of things the DPRK factories cannot produce on their own… The country can't survive economically without trade with its neighbors," said Li Mingliang, chairman of the Board of Dandong Changming Trading Co., Ltd.
A country's economy must keep moving to survive. When making any major decisions, no politician can afford to ignore the economic consequences.
The Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge is a lifeline that makes all the border trade possible. But it could all gone if sanctions start.
Pyongyang is now standing at a crossroad of history. It's hoped that if Kim Jong Un is seriously contemplating a war, what the DPRK has gained from close economic ties with China will tip the scales in favor of peace. (CNTV.cn April 10, 2013) |