MOSCOW: A Kremlin envoy has suggested that Russia and the United States build a “Putin-Trump” rail tunnel under the Bering Strait to link the two countries, unlock joint exploration of natural resources and “symbolise unity”.

The proposal by Kirill Dmitriev, President Vladimir Putin’s investment envoy and head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, envisages a construction project costing $8 billion, funded by Moscow and “international partners”, to build a 112-km rail and cargo link in under eight years. Dmitriev, who has helped spearhead a Russian charm offensive designed to revive US-Russia ties, floated the idea late on Thursday after Putin spoke to US President Donald Trump by phone and agreed to meet in Budapest to seek a way to stop the war in Ukraine.

“The dream of a US-Russia link via the Bering Strait reflects an enduring vision from the 1904 SiberiaAlaska railway to Russia’s 2007 plan. RDIF (sovereign fund) has studied existing proposals, including the US-Canada-Russia-China railroad, and will support the most viable,” Dmitriev wrote on X.

The Bering Strait, 82 km wide at its narrowest point, separates Russia’s vast and sparsely populated Chukotka region from Alaska. Ideas to link them have been around for at least 150 years. The small Diomede islands, one Russian and one belonging to the US, sit in the middle of the strait, only four kilometres apart.

Dmitriev suggested the tunnel be built by The Boring Company, a US company owned by Elon Musk.

Published in Dawn, October 18th, 2025