Russia and North Korea deepen relations with symbolic road bridge

Ties between Moscow and Pyongyang have grown extensively amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

National flags of Russia wave in the wind as North Korean trucks cross the new Russia-North Korea road bridge over the Tumen River on Monday, September 7, 2026 [Handout/Russian Transport Ministry/AFP]

The first road bridge connecting Russia and North Korea has been opened, forging a symbolic link between the pair.

The first flag-adorned trucks made their way across the one-kilometre (0.6-mile) two-lane ⁠bridge spanning the Tumen River on Monday.

list 1 of 4 Why is Chinese President Xi Jinping visiting North Korea now?

list 2 of 4 ‘Sealed in blood’: Where does the China-North Korea alliance stand today?

list 3 of 4 Western allies warn North Korean IT workers funding nuclear arsenal

list 4 of 4 ‘Tit for tat’: Why is Trump cosying up to North Korea’s Kim Jong Un again?

The two countries, which previously were only connected by air and rail routes, announced that the link marks an important milestone in their relations, which have grown considerably stronger since Russia launched its war on Ukraine.

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.

The Russian official said that up to 300 vehicles would be able to cross every day and that the bridge would be linked to Russia’s federal road network.

“I am convinced that the expansion of cross-border transport infrastructure will provide a powerful impetus for the further development of trade, economic, scientific, technological and cultural cooperation,” said Mishustin.

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.

Construction of the new bridge, which had been under discussion for years, began in April last year after being agreed during a visit by Russia’s President Vladimir Putin to North Korea in 2024.

There ‌are already direct air and rail links between Moscow and Pyongyang, but until Monday there had not been a proper road link.

The project sits close to the “Friendship Bridge” – a rail link that was commissioned in 1959 after the Korean War and for decades was the sole border crossing point.

Symbolically, the new bridge is named after Yakov Novichenko, a Red Army soldier who Pyongyang credits with protecting the life of North Korea’s first leader ‌Kim Il Sung in 1946 by intercepting a grenade thrown at him.

The opening of the link marks the deepening of relations between Moscow and Pyongyang, with cooperation having accelerated since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

That conflict has alienated Moscow from much of the Western world, a diplomatic status that North Korea has endured for years.

Pyongyang sent thousands of troops to Russia’s ‌Kursk ‌region to help repel a 2024 Ukrainian incursion there.

Mishustin alluded to that in his speech on Monday, referring to “the Korean heroes who, only recently, fought shoulder to shoulder with our soldiers and defended Russian soil”.

The bridge is not merely an engineering project, but “a new symbol of friendship”, the Russian prime minister added, calling the opening of the link “a genuinely historic event”.

Pak Thae-song said that the bridge will further cement the two countries’ cooperation “which fulfils the hopes and aspirations of the peoples of both countries as they seek shared development and prosperity”, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.

在俄罗斯入侵乌克兰期间，莫斯科和平壤之间的关系得到了极大的加强。

2026年9月7日星期一，朝鲜卡车驶过图们江上新建的俄朝公路大桥时，俄罗斯国旗在风中飘扬。[图片来源：俄罗斯交通部/法新社]

连接俄罗斯和朝鲜的第一座公路桥已经开通，象征性地连接了两国。

周一，第一批装饰着旗帜的卡车驶过横跨图们江的1公里（0.6英里）长的双车道大桥。

问题 1/4：中国国家主席习近平为何此时访问朝鲜？

列表 2/4 “血染联盟”：中朝联盟现状如何？

西方盟国警告称，朝鲜IT从业人员可能正在资助核武库（名单共4条，此为第3条）

列表 4（共 4 条）“以牙还牙”：为什么特朗普又要和朝鲜领导人金正恩走得很近？

此前两国仅通过航空和铁路连接，两国宣布，这条新线路标志着两国关系的一个重要里程碑，自俄罗斯对乌克兰发动战争以来，两国关系已显著加强。

俄罗斯总理米舒斯京和朝鲜总理朴泰成通过视频连线向两国工人和政府官员发表讲话。

这位俄罗斯官员表示，每天最多可有 300 辆车通过这座桥，而且这座桥将与俄罗斯联邦公路网相连。

“我坚信，跨境交通基础设施的扩建将为贸易、经济、科学、技术和文化合作的进一步发展提供强大的动力，”米舒斯京说。

俄罗斯政府表示，卡车将立即开始使用该桥梁运输货物。到今年年底，该桥梁将全面投入运营，届时也可用于客运。

这座新桥的建设已经讨论了多年，在俄罗斯总统弗拉基米尔·普京于 2024 年访问朝鲜期间达成一致后，于去年 4 月开始动工。

莫斯科和平壤之间已经有直达的航空和铁路连接，但直到周一之前，还没有像样的公路连接。

该项目毗邻“友谊桥”——这是一座铁路连接线，于 1959 年朝鲜战争结束后建成，几十年来一直是唯一的边境过境点。

从象征意义上讲，这座新桥以雅科夫·诺维琴科的名字命名，他是苏联红军的一名士兵，平壤方面认为他在 1946 年拦截了一枚投向朝鲜第一位领导人金日成的手榴弹，从而保护了金日成的生命。

该线路的开通标志着莫斯科和平壤关系的深化，自俄罗斯于 2022 年 2 月全面入侵乌克兰以来，两国合作一直在加速推进。

这场冲突使莫斯科与西方世界的大部分地区疏远，而朝鲜多年来一直处于这种外交困境。

平壤向俄罗斯库尔斯克地区派遣了数千名士兵，以帮助抵御2024年乌克兰对该地区的入侵。

米舒斯京在周一的讲话中也提到了这一点，他提到了“不久前还与我们的士兵并肩作战，保卫俄罗斯领土的韩国英雄”。

俄罗斯总理补充说，这座桥不仅仅是一个工程项目，更是“友谊的新象征”，并称这座桥梁的开通是“​​一个真正的历史性事件”。

据俄罗斯塔斯社报道，朴泰松表示，这座桥梁将进一步巩固两国合作，“满足了两国人民在寻求共同发展和繁荣方面的希望和愿望”。