North Korea and the Russian Far East to be connected by a pontoon bridge

The bridge will connect Khasan in Primorye to Tumangan in North Korea.

North Korea and the Russian Far East will be connected by a pontoon bridge, under a wider road transport agreement signed between the two countries last week, Minister for the Development of the Russian Far East, Alexander Galushka said.

Russia has already commenced working on the project documentation for the construction the bridge at the Khasan border crossing point Khasan in the Primorye Territory the Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East said Monday.

At the moment, a railway bridge over the Tyumen River is the only surface transport connection between the neighbours.

Russian coal is sent via the Khasan-Tumangan railway border crossing to the North Korean port of Rajin.

The reconstruction of the Hassan-Rajin railway section began in October 2008, and was put into regular operation in September 2013. After a successful trial shipment of coal via the port of Rajin to South Korea, the potential supply of coal and other goods through Rajin to the Republic of Korea is being considered.

According to Galushka, the Hasan-Rajin project fits into the plans to connect the Trans-Siberian Railway and Baikal-Amur Mainline, or BAM, to the Trans-Korean Mainline. “There are plans to invest more than $10 billion in the modernization of the Trans-Siberian and BAM this year. It is expected that the lines will be upgraded by 2018,” the minister said.

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