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How did Sino-Soviet tensions affect the use of the Amur River as a waterway?

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Topographic map of the Amur River basin and its drainage network, covering parts of northeastern China, eastern Russia, Mongolia, and North Korea. The map uses color shading to indicate elevation, shows major rivers and tributaries, surrounding mountain ranges, swamps, marshes, and lakes, and includes a locator inset of the region within Asia. Major cities, railways, and dams are also marked. — Amur River The Amur River basin and its drainage network.

During the period of heightened Sino-Soviet tensions, which lasted from the late 1960s until the early 1990s, the importance of the Amur River as a waterway significantly diminished.1

This decline in utility was closely linked to the broader geopolitical friction between the two nations, which included territorial disputes and an armed conflict along the Ussuri River in 1969. Following these tensions, the river's role as a transport corridor eventually recovered; in the years since, Russia and China have increased cooperation on navigation projects, agricultural development, and the utilization of the basin's hydroelectric potential.231