North Korea and Russia officially kicked off the construction of a new car bridge across the Tumen River on Wednesday, according to the Russian government, following months of preparatory work by a shady contractor and complaints from local residents.

Russian prime minister Mikhail Mishustin called the construction of the bridge a “significant milestone” in the relationship between Russia and North Korea, joining the groundbreaking ceremony by video.

“We are creating a reliable foundation for closer cooperation between the two countries, a path for open and fruitful dialogue, for bringing our peoples closer together, increasing the number of trips and meetings, exchanging new impressions, and getting to know history and traditions,” Mishustin said, noting the construction is expected to take a year and a half.

The new link will “allow entrepreneurs to significantly increase transport volumes and reduce logistics costs, ensure reliable and stable deliveries of various goods and contribute to the expansion of trade and economic cooperation between our countries,” the Russian premier stated, adding that the bridge will bring greater tourism opportunities in the future.

DPRK prime minister Pak Thae Song also joined the ceremony by video and said the new car bridge will become a “grand symbol of the everlasting friendship and cooperation” between Russia and North Korea, according to a video released by the Russian government.

The footage showed a number of officials attended the event, including DPRK and Russian ambassadors Sin Hong Chol and Alexander Matsegora, minister of ecology Alexander Kozlov, as well as Primorsky Krai Governor Oleg Kozhemyako, transport minister Roman Starovoit and Russian presidential envoy to the Far East Yuri Trutnev.

The project is expected to span 4.7 km (2.9 miles) and cost over $111 million at the current exchange rate, according to Mishustin’s decree from February.

The bridge itself will be 850 meters long (around half a mile), with Russia aiming to complete 300 meters on its side along with 2.4 km of connecting roads, the Russian transport minister said following a summit between Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang last June.

With two lanes spanning a combined width of seven meters, the bridge will connect to the newly constructed Khasan border crossing, which will boast 10 lanes and a capacity to process 300 vehicles and 2,850 people per day.

While official construction only began today, both sides launched preparatory work as early as November. North Korea built a road through nearby fields and woods, while Russia cleared trees from its side of the riverbank.

More visible progress has taken place in recent weeks. High-resolution Planet Labs imagery shows concentrations of construction equipment on both sides of the river, with Russia clearing an area of about 22 acres as well as erecting several buildings and even a helipad near the road leading to the site.

Mishustin previously tasked a dubious construction firm legally registered in Sochi with completing the project by Dec. 31, 2026. The company, TonnelYuzhStroi, is allowed to hire subcontractors but must carry out at least 60% of the work itself.

Despite being tasked with a multimillion dollar project considered strategic by both governments, the firm only has four employees, a history of financial losses and no record of national-level success.

NK News previously found that TonnelYuzhStroi is a front for the real contractor and beneficiary of the project — the BTS-Most company run by the Chechen business mogul Ruslan Baisarov, a confidant of the region’s head Ramzan Kadyrov.

Experts told NK News at the time that while the project offers potential for embezzlement and remains risky due to its corrupt underpinnings, it will likely be completed on time given BTS’s resources and its strong ties to the Kremlin.

Meanwhile, the preparatory construction has sparked complaints from residents of the nearby Khasan settlement. The local outlet PrimaMedia reported last week that heavy machinery and large trucks have destroyed the main gravel road, creating a major hurdle for local drivers.

So far, North Korea has been Russia’s only neighbor without a road border crossing. But deepening military ties between the two countries have likely necessitated the construction of such a link, as military-related traffic has recently relied on waterways and the existing railway bridge over the Tumen River.

While the bridge is set to further link Pyongyang and Moscow, it may complicate China’s long-standing ambitions to secure direct access to the Sea of Japan (East Sea) via the Tumen River. Beijing and Moscow previously agreed to promote the navigation of Chinese vessels in the area, but both the existing low-clearance railway bridge and the new road crossing will stand in the way.

Edited by Alannah Hill

Updated on April 30, 2025 at 6:25 p.m. KST with additional quotes by the Russian and DPRK prime ministers, on May 1, 2025 at 10:34 a.m. with bridge specifications and on July 8 at 11:33 a.m. with the clarification of the presence of transportation minister Roman Starovoit at the ceremony