China will resume international passenger train services between Beijing, Dandong in Liaoning province, and Pyongyang starting on Thursday, a move expected to facilitate cross-border travel and promote bilateral economic and people-to-people exchanges, China State Railway Group said on Tuesday.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said Tuesday that China and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea are friendly neighbors, and that maintaining regular passenger train operations is important for making travel between the two countries more convenient.

China supports the competent authorities of both sides in strengthening communication and creating more favorable conditions for bilateral personnel exchanges, Guo said at a regular news conference on Tuesday.

According to China State Railway Group, international passenger train services between Beijing and Pyongyang will run four times a week in both directions — on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays — while services between Dandong in Liaoning province and Pyongyang will operate daily.

The Beijing-Pyongyang journey takes about 23 hours and 41 minutes. Exit and entry procedures will be handled at Dandong and Sinuiju in the DPRK.

Passenger services for the international trains will be available at Beijing, Tianjin, Shanhaiguan in Hebei province, Shenyang in Liaoning province, and Dandong on the Chinese side, and at Pyongyang and Sinuiju on the DPRK side, the railway operator said.

Tickets for the international passenger trains are already available through offline channels, though fares have not yet been announced.

For the Beijing-Pyongyang service, tickets are available at international railway ticket outlets in Beijing, Tianjin, Shanhaiguan, Shenyang and Dandong. Inquiries can be made through the International Train Ticket Office of China Travel Service Head Office (Beijing) Co Ltd at 010-65120503 or 010-65120507.

For the Dandong-Pyongyang service, tickets are available at an international ticket hall in Dandong. Its hotline is 0415-2391555.

For services departing from Pyongyang to Beijing or Dandong, tickets can be purchased at the ticket office of Pyongyang Railway Station, according to the railway operator.