North Korea and Russia have begun building their first road link, the two countries announced, hailing the construction of a bridge over a border river as a major development that will further expand their political and economic ties.
The kilometre-long Tumangang Road bridge, which is expected to take 18 months to construct, aims to expand cross-border travel of people, tourism and circulation of commodities, Russian and North Korean news agencies reported.
Relations and exchange programs between the two countries have been flourishing in recent years, with North Korea supplying ammunition and troops to support Russia’s war against Ukraine.
On Thursday, North Korea and Russia simultaneously held a ground-breaking ceremony for the bridge’s construction in their respective border cities of Tumangang and Khasan on either side of the Tumen River, close to their existing rail ‘Friendship Bridge’.
North Korean Premier Pak Thae Song said the bridge’s construction would be remembered as ‘a historic monument’ in bilateral ties, North Korea’s KCNA reported Thursday.
‘This is a big milestone for Russian-Korean relations,’ Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin added, according to Russian news agency TASS.
‘We are creating a reliable basis for closer cooperation between our two countries, a road for an open and fruitful dialogue.’
It comes days after Pyongyang confirmed for the first time that it had sent combat troops to Russia to help it reclaim parts of the Kursk region that Ukrainian forces seized in a stunning incursion last year.
Russian President Vladimir Putin thanked North Korea and promised not to forget the sacrifices of North Korean soldiers for Russia.
The kilometre-long Tumangang Road bridge is expected to take 18 months to construct and aims to expand cross-border travel of people, tourism and circulation of commodities
Satellite images shared by South Korean company SI Analytics earlier this year showed construction materials and preparations being made
This photo provided by the North Korean government, shows a ground-breaking ceremony for the construction of a bridge between North Korea and Russia, in Rason Municipality, North Korea Wednesday, April 30, 2025
Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un exchange documents during a signing ceremony of the new partnership in Pyongyang, North Korea, on June 19, 2024
According to a South Korean government intelligence assessment shared with lawmakers on Wednesday, North Korea has sent about 15,000 soldiers to Russia, and 4,700 of them have been killed or wounded.
Pyongyang is believed to have provided Moscow with ballistic missiles, 120 long-range artillery systems and 120 multiple-launch rocket systems, according to Ukraine's military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov, along with millions of artillery shells.
That represents the most significant direct military package handed to the Russians by any country since the war broke out.
State media in North Korea said its fighters had made an 'important contribution' to Russia's war effort by driving Ukrainians out of Russian territory - assumed to be a reference to Kursk.
North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong Un was quoted as saying: 'They who fought for justice are all heroes and representatives of the honour of the motherland.'
Meanwhile, the Russian chief of general staff Valery Gerasimov, told Putin: 'I want to point out the participation of servicemen from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in the liberation of the Kursk Region's border areas.
'In accordance with the Treaty on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between our countries, they provided significant assistance in defeating the invading group of the Ukrainian armed forces.
'Soldiers and officers of the Korean People's Army, carrying out combat missions shoulder to shoulder with Russian servicemen, displayed high professionalism, fortitude, courage and heroism in repulsing the Ukrainian invasion,' he said.
But a slew of reports suggest North Korean soldiers performed woefully on the battlefield as they contended with modern warfare tactics, including Ukraine's widespread use of drones.
North Korean soldiers were also reportedly treated extremely poorly by their Russian commanders, struggled to understand orders and did not integrate into their units.
This macabre image reportedly shows a row of North Korean soldiers killed in the Russian city of Kursk
Ukrainian officials believe North Korea has deployed as many as 14,000 troops to the frontlines to fight against them
A North Korean soldier held after being captured by the Ukrainian army on January 11
Ukrainian servicemen fire a D-30 howitzer towards Russian troops at a frontline position, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine January 11, 2025
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky last week claimed that Russia's forces deployed North Korean missiles in a deadly attack on Kyiv that killed more than a dozen people.
The hours-long barrage of missiles and drones on April 24 was the deadliest assault on the Ukrainian capital since last July.
Zelensky said in a post to X: 'According to preliminary information, the Russians used a ballistic missile manufactured in North Korea. Our special services are verifying all the details.
'If the information that this missile was made in North Korea is confirmed, this will be further proof of the criminal nature of the alliance between Russia and Pyongyang. They kill people and torment lives together – that is the only meaning behind their cooperation.
'Russia continuously uses such weapons – missiles, artillery. In return, Pyongyang got the opportunity to make its weapons more deadly under real wartime conditions.'
In return for North Korea's supply of troops and arms, Russia has given it air defence missiles, electronic warfare equipment, drones and technology for spy satellite launches, according to the South Korean assessment.
North Korea has also been receiving Russian tourists since February 2024 amid slowly easing pandemic curbs.