North Korea and Russia are reportedly nearly finished building a bridge that is the first-ever road connection between the two countries.
Though notionally an economic project, the road is in actuality believed to be part of an expanded line intended to aid Russia in the ongoing war in Ukraine.
T-14 Armata. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
Main battle tank T-14 object 148 on heavy unified tracked platform Armata. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
The bridge in question crosses the Tumen River deep in Russia’s east.
Though both Moscow and Pyongyang have touted it as a valuable expansion of the two countries’ tourism and economic ties, its primary purpose may in fact be as a clandestine military lifeline.
While both roads and railways are clearly visible from space and can be documented via satellite imaging, rail wagons can be loaded and unloaded only at specific, immobile rail hubs.
Trucks, in contrast, can be loaded and unloaded virtually anywhere and offer the added benefit of faster loading and unloading times.
Railcar cargo can also be plumbed for its contents, which is difficult to obscure. Cargo transported by truck, by contrast, is easier to keep under wraps.
While a significant expansion of the two countries’ military cooperation, the expanded rail line linking Russia and North Korea is not the first instance of mutual military support.
An Expanding Military Alliance
North Korea has become one of Russia’s more important military partners during the ongoing war in Ukraine, and perhaps one of the most apparent aids to the Kremlin.
Since 2023, Pyongyang has expanded its support from initially supplying ammunition to Russia, including artillery shells, rockets, and ballistic missiles, to heavier weapons as well as front-line combat units.
The cooperation has helped Russia sustain its war effort in Ukraine while also affording North Korea technological assistance for military projects, cash, and combat experience gleaned from Ukrainian battlefields.
The largest North Korean contribution to Russia has been artillery shells, particularly Soviet-standard 122mm and 152mm shells, which form the basis of both countries’ artillery stocks.
In one infamous 2023 instance, North Korea seemingly managed to supply Russia with a million artillery shells well before Ukraine’s Western allies were able to.
According to South Korean intelligence, by mid-2025, North Korea had supplied more than 12 million artillery shells to Russia, a great boon to Russian forces despite some reports that North Korean ammunition may be less accurate and less reliable than its Russian equivalent.
North Korea has also supplied short-range ballistic missiles to Russia.
These stocks include missiles from the KN-23/KN-24 family, which Russian forces have used in strikes against Ukrainian cities and civilian infrastructure.
For Russia, the real-world use of North Korean missiles has allowed Pyongyang to observe their performance in combat. Multiple rocket launch systems, heavy artillery equipment, and 170mm self-propelled guns have also been supplied to Russia.
But perhaps the most significant aid to Russia has come in the form of North Korean combat troops, thousands of which have been sent to Russia.
Their involvement in the war in Ukraine initially centered around Russia’s Kursk region, the site of Ukraine’s ultimately unsuccessful cross-border offensive into Russia proper.
Aid to the North — and an Economic Farce
In return for its substantial military aid to Russia, North Korea is believed to have received substantial financial and military aid, including energy products such as Russian oil and refined fuel, cash payments, industrial goods, foodstuffs, potentially satellite and space technology assistance, and other military aid.
Overall, North Korean assistance to Russia has evolved from initial munitions to a broader, more robust military partnership.
While the bridge is purportedly planned to boost economic ties between the two countries, its reported cost — $100 million — is far greater than the annual trade between them.
In 2024, for example, total trade between Russia and North Korea was estimated at just $34 million, undercutting the economic argument for the new bridge.
A Deepening Partnership
Just days ago, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that North Korea is poised to send substantial additional military aid to Russia, including 30,000 additional North Korean troops as well as launchers for North Korean ballistic missiles. “This is a threat not only to Ukraine.
Russia is helping North Korea learn how to wage war, improve its weapons, and gain real combat experience in using them,” the Ukrainian president wrote on X. “All of this is a threat to everyone in Asia who is within range of North Korean missiles.”
About the Author: Caleb Larson
Caleb Larson is an American multiformat journalist based in Berlin, Germany. His work covers the intersection of conflict and society, focusing on American foreign policy and European security. He has reported from Germany, Russia, and the United States. Most recently, he covered the war in Ukraine, reporting extensively on shifting battle lines in Donbas and writing about the war’s civilian and humanitarian toll. Previously, he worked as a Defense Reporter for POLITICO Europe. You can follow his latest work on X.
