The law of equilibrium in action – this is how one can formulate what is happening in Russia right now. It seems that Russia has failed to maintain control over the territories in the Far East that have long been at risk. While the Kremlin is focused on the war with Ukraine, it has to sacrifice lands in the opposite part of Russia.
It became known that during a recent visit of Russian President Putin to China, Moscow expressed readiness to transfer rights to its neighbor on border lands along the Tumangan River.
What they are sacrificing
This area is extremely important for China: it allows for the transportation of a significant number of Chinese vessels towards the Sea of Japan. However, up to now, two factors have hindered this:
- Russian border, crossing which required extra time, paperwork, and finances. All of this made such a route less rational than others.
- “Friendship Bridge”, constructed on the Tumangan River in 1959. The symbolic bridge was built to signify the unity between Russia and North Korea, but for more urgent interests, the friendship with North Korea can be slightly pushed aside.
If all these obstacles are removed, the route to the Sea of Japan for China will become much faster and cheaper compared to existing alternative options.
The main function of the “Friendship Bridge”, stretching 623 meters over the river, was to transport raw materials to China and North Korea. Now Russia will use other routes, leading to increased transportation costs. Therefore, the price that China previously paid will now essentially shift to the Russian Federation.
The opinion of the “little brother” is irrelevant
Since China is currently a leading state that influences many aspects of Russia’s actions and fate, including the war in Ukraine, Putin is forced to agree to certain concessions, even if it means loss of its own territories and generally unfavorable conditions for the country.
During his visit to North Korea, Putin informed about the change of power in the leadership of North Korea – Kim Jong-un. Since in this situation Russia holds the upper hand, the opinion of the Koreans here is irrelevant.
