North Korea and Russia opened their first road bridge yesterday in a carefully choreographed display of friendship, a structure which spans the Tumen river and which both sides cast as an important milestone in their deepening strategic partnership.
The first flag-adorned trucks trundled across the 1km long two-lane bridge as Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and North Korea’s Premier Pak Thae Song tuned in by video link to address workers and government officials from both countries.
Construction of the new bridge, which had been under discussion for years, began in April last year after the project was agreed during a visit by President Vladimir Putin to North Korea in 2024.
Mishustin said up to 300 vehicles would be able to cross every day and that the bridge would be linked to Russia’s federal road network and have easy access to the transport corridor which runs from the far eastern city of Vladivostok to St Petersburg.
Trucks would begin to use the bridge immediately to transport cargo, the Russian government said.
At the end of this year, the bridge would be fully operational and could be used for passenger traffic too.
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