The building of a bridge over the Nistru River as part of a new highway that will connect Kiev and Chisinau will be financed with money from the state budget of Ukraine, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Ihor Zhovkva stated in an interview for tsn.ua, IPN reports.

The Ukrainian official said that during the Moldovan President’s visit to Ukraine, a memorandum of cooperation in the field of infrastructure was signed. “The construction of a bridge over the Nistru River in Yampol-Cosăuți region and of the corresponding highway, which will ensure connection between Kiev and Chisinau, is one of the projects we will start immediately,” said Ihor Zhovkva, noting the road between the two capitals could be covered by car in about five hours.

The state road company Ukravtodor started work on the regulatory framework for the financing. Ukraine will also cover the costs for building a part of the highway from Kiev directly to the bridge. For its part, Moldova will build the own part of the highway.

“This is an absolutely realistic project with realistic financing. We are to only implement it. The Ukrainian side and the Moldovan side received the relevant instructions,” said the official.

The Presidents of the two countries, Maia Sandu and Vladimir Zelensky, agreed to build a bridge over the Nistru, at the Cosăuți-Yampol border crossing point, in an official meeting in Kiev on January 12.