MOSCOW
\nRussia and North Korea on Wednesday began construction of a road bridge between the two countries that will span the Tumen river, part of an effort to strengthen their strategic partnership, Russia\u2019s prime minister said.
\nThe bridge is being built near the existing \u201cFriendship Bridge,\u201d a rail bridge which was commissioned in 1959 after the Korean war.
\nAt a ceremony dedicated to the start of the new bridge\u2019s construction, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said it was a significant event in Russian-North Korean relations, the TASS state news agency reported.
\n\u201cThe significance goes far beyond just an engineering task,\u201d Mishustin was quoted as saying. \u201cIt symbolizes our common desire to strengthen friendly, good-neighborly relations and increase inter-regional cooperation.\u201d
\nThe new road bridge, which has been under discussion for years, will be 850 meters (2789 ft) and link up with the Russian highway system. Its construction was agreed during a visit by President Vladimir Putin to North Korea in 2024.
\nRussia\u2019s Kommersant newspaper said the bridge will be ready by the summer of 2026.
\nMishustin said the bridge \u201cwill allow entrepreneurs to significantly increase transportation volumes and reduce transportation costs, ensure reliable and stable supplies of various products, which will contribute to the expansion of trade and economic cooperation,\u201d TASS reported.
\nAbout 600 North Korean troops have been killed fighting for Russia against Ukraine out of a total deployment of 15,000, South Korean lawmakers said on Wednesday, citing the country\u2019s intelligence agency.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
MOSCOW Russia and North Korea on Wednesday began construction of a road bridge between the two countries that will span the Tumen river, part of an effort to strengthen their strategic partnership, Russia\u2019s prime minister said. The bridge is being built near the existing \u201cFriendship Bridge,\u201d a rail bridge which was commissioned in 1959 after […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":475716,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-475690","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n