Russia, North Korea connect road bridge ahead of summer opening

MOSCOW, Apr 21: Russia and North Korea held a ceremony Tuesday to mark the joining of the first road bridge connecting the countries, set to open for traffic this summer, Moscow said.
Ties between the two heavily sanctioned countries have surged amid Russia's war on Ukraine, with Moscow and Pyongyang deepening economic, political, cultural and military links.
South Korea warned last week that Chinese and Russian support was helping revive the North Korean economy, which has struggled for years under sweeping international sanctions, almost complete international isolation and huge military investment.
Moscow's foreign ministry said the opening of the bridge would "become a truly landmark stage in Russian-Korean relations. Its significance goes far beyond a purely engineering task".
The bridge, which crosses the Tumen river that marks the border between the two countries, will be able to handle up to 300 vehicles and 2,850 people a day, Russia's transport ministry said. Russia and North Korea inked a defence treaty in 2024 that calls for military support in the case of either country being attacked.
Pyongyang that year sent thousands of troops to Russia to support its war on Ukraine. They were deployed to the western Kursk region to held fend off a months-long counter-offensive by Kyiv's troops.    �"AFP