Russia-North Korea Border Crossing Undergoing Significant Upgrades

The only effective sole border crossing between Russia and North Korea, the Khasan/Tumangan railway checkpoint, has become fully operational and is undergoing significant upgrades to boost capacity. The crossing was closed during the Covid pandemic and only reopened, with limited services, in November 2022. With Russia-North Kore trade in weapons and energy now reaching record volumes, the route is also being expanded.

Viktor Demyanko, the Deputy head of Russia’s Far Eastern Railways, has stated that “Four railway checkpoints contribute to the development of cross-border trade in the Russian Far East. Almost all of these checkpoints are currently operating at full capacity or are rapidly gaining momentum. In particular, the Khasan/Tumangan railway checkpoint has been fully operational this year. And with our Korean partners, we are developing cross-border trade in that direction.”

The Khasan/Tumangan railway checkpoint is the only route between Russia and North Korea, and the main trade flows between the countries passes through it. This year, construction engineers are begun reconstructing the border crossing from the Russian side. Work is planned for competition by the end of 2026, with additional cargo inspection facilities installed, new platforms and storage facilities for goods will be built, and new radiometers and spectrometers for radiation monitoring will be put into place.

During President Putin’s visit to Pyongyang in June, agreements were also made to build a road bridge between the countries over the Tumen River to further develop it for cross-border road transport. That has been under consideration for a number of years, however sanctions imposed upon North Korea meant that trade volumes to support the construction of this route would have been low. However, with Russia also falling under sanctions and the countries concluding a comprehensive strategic partnership pact in the middle of this year and bilateral interaction increasing, the road link route has become even more viable.