North Korea and Russia opened their first cross-border road bridge over the Tumen River, linking the North Korean city of Rason with Khasan in Russia. Opening ceremonies were held simultaneously in both locations on Sept. 7, with North Korean Premier Pak Thae-song and Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin attending. The roughly 5-kilometer bridge is intended to support larger cargo flows, passenger traffic, tourism and wider economic cooperation, while potentially facilitating military exchanges. Until now, the countries’ only border crossing was a rail bridge. The project was agreed at a bilateral summit in Pyongyang in June 2024, and construction began near the rail bridge in April last year. The crossing is named after Yakov Novichenko, a Soviet Red Army officer credited with intercepting a grenade thrown at North Korean founder Kim Il Sung in 1946.