Russia’s new rail route to annexed Crimea is an effort to integrate Russia and Crimea’s economy. It’s now the biggest railway bridge in Europe, almost 12 miles long, costing around $3.5 billion. Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated construction workers on this engineering feat. Meanwhile the US, Canada, and many other EU nations say it violates international law by undermining Ukraine’s sovereignty. Host Marco Werman speaks with Alexey Starodubov, the director of the Crimean Expert Center. Sarodubov used to advise Crimea’s Prime Minister on foreign investment projects before the peninsula was annexed by the Kremlin.
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