Russian construction workers are already building a bridge that will link mainland Russia to the Crimean peninsula which the country incorporated last year.
The news was first announced by a Crimean association called "Simferopol" (the administrative center of Crimea) which posted pictures of the works on Facebook.
The 19-km bridge will link Crimea to Krasnodar in "mainland Russia" through the Kerchen Strait, which connects the Azov and the Black Sea.
The company tasked with building the bridge is Stroygazmontazh", owned by Russian businessman Arkady Rotenberg who is often pointed to as part of President Putin's inner circle.
Construction is scheduled to end in 2018, according to local media outlets such as Korrespondent.net. Others mention a possible price tag go USD 8 B.
Crimea broke away from Ukraine to join Russia after what it describes as a local referendum, in a move which failed to gain much international recognition and which ever seen has been a bone of contention between the West and Moscow.