China and Russia plan to consult with North Korea on China's access to the sea through the lower reaches of the Tumen River.
For a long time, the Tumen River sea access issue has been a bottleneck for the development of northeast China.
For historical reasons, the lower 15 kilometers of the Tumen River is controlled by Russia and North Korea, preventing Chinese ships from sailing freely.
Now, with the changes in the international situation and the deepening of Sino-Russian relations, the desire to open the Tumen River to the sea seems to have seen the light.
This will not only boost northeast China's economic development, but also provide new energy export opportunities for Russia, to the entire northeast Asian region.
This cooperation has far-reaching political and strategic significance. It will strengthen Chinese influence in Northeast Asia and enhance China's strategic maritime position.
For the DPRK, participation in this project will provide it with greater opportunities for economic cooperation and investment, promoting its economic development and international status.
During Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to the DPRK on June 19, the two governments reached a number of important cooperation agreements, including the construction of a bridge across the Tumen River.
Especially noteworthy is the project to build a cross-border road bridge over the Tumen River.
The Tumen River crosses the international border between China, North Korea and Russia, as shown in Fig. 1. The river originates from a basaltic plateau surrounding Mt. Baekdu, with an elevation of 2,750 m, and then flows into the East Sea. The abundance of water, averaging 6.8 billion m3/year, has enormous potential as a water resource and as a source of electricity for riparian countries. China, Russia, and South Korea have recognized the economic value of developing the Tumen River. Credit KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology)
The visit not only consolidated friendly relations between the two countries on the basis of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty between the Russian Federation and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, but also led to new cooperation agreements in various fields.
Three agreements were signed on the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the construction of cross-border road bridges and cooperation in the fields of health, medical education and science.
Among them, the construction of the bridge over the Tumen River is particularly crucial. This important waterway, most of which is the border river between China and the DPRK, with the border river between the DPRK and Russia downstream, will be revitalized by the implementation of this project.
According to Russian Transport Minister Starovoyt, the construction program for the road bridge, about 850 meters long, is being developed by the Russian side. Russia will be responsible for of building 300 meters of the bridge and 2.4 kilometers of approach bridges as an extension of the Ussuri Highway. The North Korean side will also be responsible for synchronizing the construction to ensure the completion of the project.
It is worth mentioning that China and Russia have recently made new progress in border cooperation by jointly developing the Heixiazizi island, which is located on the China-Russia border.
In addition, China and Russia plan to consult with North Korea on China's access to the sea through the lower reaches of the Tumen River.
The Tumen River, which originates from the Changbai mountain range in China's Jilin Province, has been an important route between the hinterland and the sea since ancient times.
However, for a long time, the Tumen River sea access issue has been a bottleneck for the development of northeast China. For historical reasons, the lower 15 kilometers of the Tumen River is controlled by Russia and North Korea, preventing Chinese ships from sailing freely.
Chinese ships cannot sail freely.
Now, with the changes in the international situation and the deepening of Sino-Russian relations, the desire to open the Tumen River to the sea seems to have seen the light.
This will not only boost northeast China's economic development, but also provide new energy export opportunities for Russia, to the entire northeast Asian region.
Moreover, this cooperation has far-reaching political and strategic significance. It will strengthen Chinese influence in Northeast Asia and enhance China's strategic maritime position.
For the DPRK, participation in this project will provide it with greater opportunities for economic cooperation and investment, promoting its economic development and international status.
China and Russia have already actively engaged in it, and the DPRK has also expressed willingness to strengthen cooperation.
Therefore, China and Russia have reason to believe that the construction of the Tumen River Bridge will be completed.
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