Russian and DPRK prime ministers set to join the ceremony remotely, 1.5 years after construction began<\/p>\n
Russia and North Korea are set to hold an official ceremony marking the completion of their first vehicle bridge across the Tumen River on Monday, according to Russian state media.<\/p>\n
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin is expected to join the ceremony remotely later in the day, Russia 1 Primorye reported<\/a> on Monday. His counterpart Pak Thae Song will attend the event from the DPRK side, according to the Russian government<\/a>.<\/p>\n Russian Minister of Natural Resources Alexander Kozlov, Transport Minister Andrei Nikitin, Minister for the Development of the Russian Far East and Arctic Alexei Chekunkov and Primorsky Krai Gov. Oleg Kozhemyako will also attend the completion ceremony.<\/p>\n The bridge will bear the name of Soviet officer Yakov Novichenko<\/a>, who saved North Korea\u2019s first leader Kim Il Sung from an assassination attempt in 1946, Nikitin previously announced.<\/p>\n The existing Korea-Russia Friendship Bridge, a railway crossing located upstream on the Tumen River, has been the only link connecting the two countries since the late 1950s.<\/p>\n The roughly kilometer-long bridge will form part of a larger 4.7-km Russian border crossing project linking the Russian and DPRK checkpoint facilities on both sides of the river.<\/p>\n The Russian crossing will have 10 lanes and the capacity to process 300 vehicles and 2,850 people each day, according to Russia\u2019s transport ministry.<\/p>\n Mishustin and Pak kicked off<\/a> the large-scale construction project remotely at a ceremony in April 2025. The two countries held another ceremony<\/a> marking the physical connection of the bridge the following year.\u00a0<\/p>\n Preparation for the project began months in advance, with early signs reported in Nov. 2024. Russia initially agreed<\/a> to allocate some $100 million for the project and hired an obscure company named TonnelYuzhStroi as its main contractor.<\/p>\n Construction on the North Korean side was largely finalized in the summer, while Russia is still adding finishing touches to its crossing facility following the installation of the main and auxiliary buildings in recent weeks.<\/p>\n NK News\/NK Pro investigations found<\/a> the project\u2019s cost had at least doubled<\/a> as of late August, while TonnelYuzhStroi appeared<\/a> to be a front for a large Chechen construction conglomerate and ultimate beneficiary.<\/p>\n The two countries initially planned to open the crossing on June 19, which marks the second anniversary of the summit between Russian and DPRK leaders Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang, where they agreed to spearhead the construction.<\/p>\n