Russia Proposes $8-Billion Rail Tunnel Linking Alaska And Siberia; Trump Reacts

United States President Donald Trump has responded to a proposal for a “Putin-Trump” rail tunnel under the Bering Strait — a mega infrastructure link envisioned to connect Russia’s Chukotka region with Alaska, Indian Express reported.

Kirill Dmitriev, Russia’s investment envoy and chief of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), unveiled the idea on Thursday.

The plan outlines an $8 billion, 112-kilometre undersea rail and cargo tunnel linking Russia and the US through the Bering Strait — expected to take eight years to complete with support from Moscow and “international partners,” according to news agency Reuters.

At a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday, Trump described the proposal as “interesting.”

When he asked Zelenskyy for his opinion, the Ukrainian leader quipped, “I’m not happy with this idea,” drawing laughter from the US side.

The tunnel idea was floated by Dmitriev after a phone call between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, where the two reportedly agreed to meet in Budapest to explore options for ending the ongoing war in Ukraine that began with Russia’s 2022 invasion of Kyiv.

In a post on X, Dmitriev revealed that a feasibility study for the Russia-Alaska tunnel began six months ago.

He added that the RDIF and its partners had previously funded the first commercial railroad bridge between Russia and China.

"Russian Direct Investment Fund with partners financed on a commercial basis the first ever railroad bridge between Russia and China. The bridge reduced cargo route by more than 700 kilometres. We have started the feasibility study of the Russia-Alaska tunnel six months ago," he said.

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