金正恩起程当天，探访专列必经之丹东
据韩联社23日晚间报道，一列可能载有朝鲜领导人金正恩的火车专列于23日晚9:40左右通过中朝边境城市辽宁省丹东市，预计将于24日上午10点后抵达北京。
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s train predicted to arrive in Beijing on Sunday
China-North Korea Friendship Bridge in Dandong, Northeast China's Liaoning Province File photo: VCG
The city of Dandong, which borders North Korea in Northeast China's Liaoning Province, was hoping to welcome North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's train on Saturday, and the city had apparently put on a light show on the landmark China-North Korea Friendship Bridge and enhanced street patrols, say local residents.
According to media reports, Kim set off by train to Vietnam on Saturday for his second meeting with US President Donald Trump in Hanoi on February 27 and 28.
No details of the North Korean leader's travel arrangements have been officially released.
South Korean news agency Yonhap, however, reported on Saturday that a train, with Kim likely on board, was due to arrive in Dandong around 9:40 pm on Saturday, and it was expected to arrive in Beijing on Sunday.
Local residents say the light display on the China-North Korea Friendship Bridge in Dandong, Liaoning Province is normally turned on, as they were on Saturday evening, only when special guests from North Korea come to visit the city. 图 via Global Times
A display of lights was seen along the China-North Korea Friendship Bridge which links the two contries around 8 pm on Saturday, a local resident told the Global Times.
He said that normally the lights are turned off to save energy, and are seen only when "important guests" arrive.
The lights were turned off at the Dandong Zhonglian Hotel at 8 pm on Saturday. The hotel is next to the China-North Korea Friendship Bridge in Northeast China’s Liaoning Province. 图 via Global Times
Lights of all the guest rooms in the Dandong Zhonglian Hotel, which is next to the bridge, were turned off on Saturday night. This was another sign that "important figures" from North Korea were coming to the city, local residents say.
A resident contacted by the Global Times said that police were seen patrolling the streets on Saturday evening, while another resident said several streets had been cordoned off at around 10 pm.
Roads in Dandong are normally blocked off the day important North Korean figures come to visit, said local residents.
If Kim has chosen to travel by train and expects to arrive in Hanoi on February 25, he would have needed to depart Pyongyang sometime Saturday, Lü Chao, a research fellow at the Liaoning Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times.
The distance between Pyangyang, capital of North Korea, and Hanoi, capital of Vietnam, is more than 4,500 kilometres by train.
If Kim makes the entire trip by train, China will have a lot of work to do to make proper track and hospitality arrangements, said Lü.
It's unlikely Kim will change to a high-speed train while traveling through China. "The North Korean leader's special train is armed and bulletproof, and Chinese high-speed trains cannot meet those requirements," Lü noted.
Kim's train will stop at the Vietnamese border station of Dong Dang, where he will disembark and drive 170 kilometres to Hanoi by car, Reuters quoted sources as saying on Wednesday.
Lü said it is possible for the North Korean leader to take a train through part of China but then take a flight for the last leg of his journey to Vietnam.
The distance between Pyongyang and Hanoi by air is 2,700 kilometers and it takes 3.5 hours on a special aircraft, according to Yonhap.
The North Korean leader's travel time by train would likely be more than over 48 hours, according to the Tass News Agency.
俄罗斯塔斯社当天稍早援引朝鲜外交人士的消息称，金正恩当日坐火车专列启程赴越南河内出席下周的“金特会”，其专列从平壤出发的时间是朝鲜时间17时。报道称，金正恩将可能全程乘火车到越南，平壤到河内的距离超过4500公里，行程预计将达48小时。
最近两日，朝鲜最高领导人金正恩究竟会选择怎样的路线和交通方式前往越南参加第二次“金特会”引发各国媒体猜测。中国辽宁省社科院半岛问题研究专家吕超23日在接受《环球时报》记者采访时表示，如果金正恩选择全程乘火车出行并在25日抵达河内，的确应该于23日左右从平壤出发。他认为，如果如外媒所说金正恩全程都乘坐专列经中国前往越南，中国的火车运行安排将有大量工作要做。
至于是否可能先乘专列抵达中国，再换乘由中方提供的高铁前往河内，吕超认为，这种可能性也不是很大，“因为朝鲜领导人乘火车出行的意义就在于其专列本身，其专列有防弹和武装功能，比较难于为中国的高铁所替代”。吕超认为，还有一种可能性，先乘专列抵达北京，再由北京乘飞机前往越南。不过，“外界传出的有关朝鲜的消息一向真真假假，可能有各种烟雾弹”。
据韩联社称，平壤至河内的直线距离为2700公里，乘专机3.5小时左右可抵达，但乘火车则需要接近3天。分析认为，基于安全考量，朝鲜安排最高领导人出访时时常会采用“声东击西”的方法，故而“即使金正恩专列抵达丹东，他也不一定真的在车厢之中。”另据此前越南消息人士透露，金正恩此次访问越南的交通工具可能同时包括火车与飞机，他有可能选择飞机去程、火车回程，或者反之火车去程，飞机回程。
23日晚间，一名丹东市民告诉《环球时报》记者，当天晚上8点钟左右，连接两国边境的中朝铁路大桥被彩灯点亮。据他称，平时为了省电，这座大桥一般不亮灯，只有在“重要客人”到访时才会被点亮。而位于大桥旁边的丹东中联大酒店临街窗户晚间全部呈黑暗状态，没有一间有灯光，这在当地人眼中是“对岸（朝鲜）有重要人物来”的标志之一。
这名市民称，晚上8点时，大桥和丹东火车站附近尚未出现封路或交通管制，但已可看到少量警察在街头巡视。晚9时许，火车站与大桥附近道路已全部封锁，车辆和人群不得通行。另一名市民则在晚间10点左右告诉记者，丹东市多路段已被封锁，据他听说，相关交通管制将可能持续到次日凌晨。丹东当地人告诉记者，据以往经验，除有一次朝鲜重要人物访华时丹东提前两天即开始警戒外，其余当朝鲜专列经过丹东都只有当天进行短暂封路管制，没有提前大规模的管制与警戒迹象。
“不管怎样，我们丹东人都希望朝鲜多来人，都是邻居、亲戚，中国和朝鲜关系不好点儿、紧密点能成么？丹东人都希望这样。”一名丹东市民这样对《环球时报》说。
【环球时报-环球网报道 记者白云怡】
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