North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un, said the North Korea nuclear navy program will proceed as planned, with Pyongyang seeking nuclear-armed naval forces and larger 10,000-tonne warships.
Kim made the announcement Tuesday in Nampho, a port city southwest of Pyongyang, during the commissioning of the Choe Hyon warship, the Korean Central News Agency reported Wednesday.
“The programme of equipping the Navy with nuclear weapons is following its planned course unerringly,” Kim said, according to KCNA.
Kim said the plan would keep North Korea’s nuclear force ready for “multifaceted and efficient operation.” KCNA said the Choe Hyon belongs to a 5,000-tonne class of warships launched last year.
North Korea has said that Choe Hyon carries its “most powerful weapons.” Kim oversaw a cruise missile test from the vessel in April.
Kim said North Korea would soon commission the destroyer Kang Kon for operations. He said the country would then launch 10,000-tonne strategic warships “one after another,” according to KCNA.
The North Korean leader said Pyongyang aimed to build two surface ships every year in a class higher than the Choe Hyon. He said the plan included one 10,000-tonne cruiser.
A 10,000-tonne naval ship is roughly comparable in size to some US and South Korean destroyers. The US Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyer and South Korea’s Sejong the Great-class at full load as examples.
South Korea operates more than 10 ships above 5,000 tonnes, compared with North Korea’s two. Choi Gi-il, a military studies professor at Sangji University, told AFP that the 10,000-tonne mark would carry symbolism for North Korea.
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He said a vessel of that size would show Pyongyang’s determination not to fall further behind Seoul’s maritime power.
Lim Eul-chul, a North Korea expert at Kyungnam University, told AFP the move mainly sent a message to the United States, South Korea’s main security ally.
Lim said ship-launched cruise missiles with tactical nuclear warheads would increase pressure on South Korean and US militaries if North Korea deployed them.
Washington stations about 28,500 troops in South Korea to support Seoul against military threats from Pyongyang.
