"Red East"), formerly known as Andong, is a coastal prefecture-level city in southeastern Liaoning province, in the northeastern region of the People's Republic of China.

Dandong has therefore had a dynamic history because of its strategic location for the northeast's rich natural resources and because of its convenient access to the ocean.

It is designated as a major export production centre for the province, and is a port city connected by rail with Shenyang and Sinuiju.

[1] Dandong is located on the western border of North Korea and the northwest (right) shore of the Yalu River, facing Sinuiju to the southeast.

It is situated on the southeast corner of the Liaodong Peninsula, near the mouth of the Yalu River, which empties into the Korea Bay, which is part of the Yellow Sea.

Winter usually begins in late November and continues until the end of March (about 4 months), with the most severe cold only lasting for around three weeks in December, January, or February.

Spring, though a period of quick warming, is delayed by one month compared to more inland parts of the province, and is somewhat dry until May.

[5] Dandong is divided into 3 districts, 2 towns, and one autonomous county: Maps and artifacts suggest that the area has been settled since the Gojoseon kingdom period.

On 20 January 1965, the city adopted its present name of Dandong, which means "red east," to avoid the connotations of its previous name, which was considered imperialistic by some.

Recently, the city has been gaining influence in this region of China because of its market with North Korea and the government's future plans to develop the city into a special "Border Economic Cooperation Zone" for export and import in order to expand the country's ability to conduct trade.

[citation needed] Dandong's annual resident per capita wage income for 2004 was somewhere between ¥9,500 and ¥12,237 RMB and the city's GDP was US$3.77 billion.

Qianyang Town, situated at the eastern tip of the Belt is now an important component of Dandong's coastal development, and has an opportunity to demonstrate its strategic position.

[25] In October 2011, the Chinese government announced a $7.1 billion expansion over five years to expand Dandong Port.

Several multinational companies including US-owned Harman,[28] have made Dandong the location for their northeast Asian headquarters.

[citation needed] The waterways near the port have become an important tourist attraction in the region and include the Yalu River Park.

Less than 100 meters downstream is the Yalu River Broken Bridge which was destroyed by American bombing during the Korean War.

[citation needed] Outside of central Dandong, there are other landmarks such as: the Dagushan Scenic Area in Donggang, and Shuifeng Dam in Kuandian Manchu Autonomous County, and Fenghuang Mountain in Fengcheng.

Wulong mountain scenic area is located in Dandong City, 25 km (16 mi) northwest of the town of old village Zhen'an District, is located in Zhen'an District within Fengcheng's city borders and includes five Longshan and Wulongbei spa.

The Black Creek Reservoir near the Shou artillery battalion has spas, sanatoriums and a summer resort to cater to tourism.

Dandong fried fork seeds noodle (丹东炒叉子) is the most characteristic snack in Dandong, which is made of rice fork seeds as the main ingredient and yellow clam meat, leek, carrot, and round onion as the auxiliary ingredients, stir-fried with seasonings such as minced garlic and sesame oil.

[30] Dandong yellow clams (丹东黄蚬子) are grown at the mouth of the Yalu River, where nutrients are abundant and the water temperature is suitable.

Yellow clams have become the golden sign of Dandong seafood and were registered as a national geographical indication by the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture in 2011.