New bridge linking North Korea and Russia opens

A bridge connecting North Korea’s Rason and Russia’s Khasan border areas has opened in ceremonies held simultaneously on both sides of the border.

Operative Information Center-OMM reports, citing Yonhap, which referred to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), that senior officials from both countries attended the opening ceremony.

North Korean Prime Minister Pak Thae-song and Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin joined the event via video link.

In his speech, Mishustin said expanding cross-border transport infrastructure would provide a significant boost to cooperation between Russia and North Korea in trade, the economy and technology.

The Russian prime minister said the bridge would allow up to 300 vehicles to cross daily and would be connected to Russia’s federal highway network.

Pak Thae-song said the bridge would strengthen cooperation between the two countries and meet the hopes and aspirations of both peoples.

During the opening ceremony, trucks carrying the flags of both countries crossed the two-lane, 1-kilometer bridge.

Russia and North Korea currently have direct air and rail links. The new bridge has symbolic significance as the first road bridge connecting the two countries.

The Tumen River Bridge links Rason in northeastern North Korea with the Khasan district in Russia’s Far East.

The Tumen River, which is more than 500 kilometers long, flows through areas along the borders of China and Russia before emptying into the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea.

The border between North Korea and Russia is 17 kilometers long, while the border between North Korea and China is approximately 1,350 kilometers long.