The image is said to be North Korea’s new warship
SCREENSHOT OF KCTV
Yonhap news agency on December 31 cited information from the South Korean military saying that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has begun construction of a 4,000-ton warship equipped with a vertical launch system, in the context of Pyongyang seeking to develop nuclear weapons and missiles.
The above assessment was made a day after North Korean media reported on a plenary session of the Korean Workers’ Party, posting pictures of leader Kim Jong-un visiting a shipyard where new warships were located. is being closed.
“North Korea is building a 4,000-ton warship at Nampho. Based on the size of the ship, it is capable of carrying (ship-to-surface) missiles,” a South Korean military official said. Nampho is a western port city in North Korea.
However, the official noted that it could take up to several years for North Korea to complete ship construction and more than 10 years to deploy ships to participate in operations. North Korea’s largest warship today is a 1,500-ton ship equipped with ship-to-ship missiles and does not have a vertical launch system.
Meanwhile, a member of the House of Representatives of the Korean People’s Power Party said that North Korea is building larger ships than the military estimates.
Congressman Yu Yong-weon said that the warship appeared to be a 5,000-ton ship and more similar to a Chinese ship than a Russian ship, and noted that North Korea first revealed an image of the ship’s bottom during Mr. Kim’s inspection trip in May. 9.
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When inspecting the shipyard, Mr. Kim said that strengthening the navy was “the most important issue to resolutely protect the country’s maritime sovereignty and improve war preparations at the present time.”
Congressman Yu said that North Korea’s warships are not yet equipped with combat systems, but expressed concern that it could be a new threat due to its ability to launch ship-to-land missiles.
North Korea has not commented on the above comments from the South Korean side.
In another development, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on December 31 that leader Kim Jong-un inspected a new tourist area on the east coast, emphasizing that the project is the first big step. aimed at promoting tourism.
Mr. Kim and his daughter visited the Kalma beach resort in Wonsan on December 29
Mr. Kim visited newly completed hotels and other service facilities in the coastal tourist area of Kalma on December 29. The images also show Ju-ae’s daughter accompanying the leader.
The tourist area is expected to open in June 2025. This project has been developed since 2014 in the plan to exploit tourism at Myongsasimni beach on the Kalma peninsula.
