North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un leaves by armored train to Vietnam to attend the summit with Donald Trump

A Kim Jong-un armored train arrived Saturday night (local time) in China from North Korea, four days after the planned summit between the North Korean dictator and US President Donald Trump in Vietnam.

The convoy crossed the bridge over the Yalu River that separates North Korea from China, reported the South Korean news agency. Yonhap and the specialized site NK NewsJournalists from the Chinese border town of Dandong stayed away from the railroad by order of the security forces.

The official press agency of North Korea, KCNA, He had confirmed Kim's departure from Pyongyang shortly before.

"Senior party officials, the government and the armed forces have sincerely desired the success of Kim Jong-un (…) and a safe return," he said. KCNA.

The security device was impressive before the arrival of the train, with metal barriers preventing access to 100 meters of the tracks and banks of the border, according to a journalist in the region. AFP.

Guests at a hotel located in front of the border bridge had to leave the property Friday in a hurry. The official reason was that the hotel was going to be renovated.

Absolute secrecy surrounds the North Korean leader's agenda before the summit with Trump, the second between the two leaders since the historic Singapore meeting last June.

Several Vietnamese sources, however, privately said that Kim Jong-un would arrive by train at Dong Dang Vietnamese Railway Station, on the border with China, and that he would then continue his journey on the road to Hanoi.

Journalists from AFP They saw Vietnamese soldiers stationed along the road leading from the border to the capital, 170 km away. The authorities of the Asian country have already announced the closure of road traffic, usually very important, Tuesday between 6:00 and 14:00 local.

The Vietnamese Foreign Ministry announced on Saturday that "Kim Jong-un will pay an official visit in the coming days".

The press did not say when the visit will take place, but several sources told AFP Kim is scheduled to arrive on February 25 or 26 by train. Between the places to visit are two industrial areas in the provinces of Quang Ninh and Bac Ninh, they explained to official sources AFP.

Kim and Trump will meet on February 27th and 28th. The summit is expected to provide more details on the decommissioning program of the North Korean nuclear arsenal.

At their first meeting in Singapore, the two leaders signed a document with vague language in which North Korea pledged to denuclearize.

Kim flew to Singapore, but for this new summit, he preferred to reuse the preferred means of transportation of the North Korean leaders, the train.

The route through the Chinese territory will be a logistic puzzle for this country.

"You have to clean the tracks, ensure safety throughout the trip," said Justin Hastings, professor of international relations at the University of Sydney.

In total, from the North Korean capital to the Sino-Vietnamese border, the trip lasts 4,000 kilometers, or about 60 hours.

By Matthew Knight and Claire Lee in Seoul