Simplify the following text for a Grade 8 native English-speaking person.
Original: The Diomede Islands are often mentioned as likely intermediate stops for a bridge or tunnel ( Bering Strait bridge ) spanning the Bering Strait .
Simplified: There are plans to build a connection between Siberia and Alaska , either as a bridge or a tunnel ( Bering Strait bridge spanning the Bering Strait ) . In that case , the Diomede Island would be a halfway point , as they are about the middle of the Bering Strait .