Kim Jong-un inspects ‘nuclear-powered submarine’ project

North Korea has unveiled what is says is a nuclear-powered submarine for the first time, and it could pose a huge threat.

North Korea has unveiled a nuclear-powered submarine for the first time, which could pose a “major threat”.

According to state media, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected a project to build a nuclear-powered submarine on Saturday, saying that “radically” boosting the navy was a key part of Pyongyang’s defensive strategy.

Kim visited shipyards focused on building warships, the Korean Central News Agency reported, without giving details of the exact date or location of the inspection.

Kim “learned about the building of a nuclear-powered strategic guided missile submarine,” the report said, which was one of Kim’s key military goals on a laundry list of high tech weaponry unveiled at a previous party congress.

The report is likely referring to a nuclear-powered submarine capable of launching ballistic missiles, Yonhap news agency reported, adding this was the first time the nuclear-armed North had revealed construction of a ballistic missile submarine.

Kim said the country’s “sea defence capability … will be fully displayed in any necessary waters without limitation,” KCNA said.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (C) inspecting a shipbuilding project at a major shipyard at an undisclosed location in North Korea. Picture: KCNA VIA KNS/AFP

“The development of the naval force into an elite and nuclear-armed force constitutes an important content in the strategy for the development of the national defence,” it added.

South Korean submarine expert Moon Keun-sik said the naval vessel appears to be a 6000-ton-class or 7000-ton-class one, capable of carrying around 10 missiles.

Moon said the use of the term “the strategic guided missiles” meant it would carry nuclear-capable weapons,CNN reported.

“It would be absolutely threatening to us and the US,” Moon warned.

In 2023, North Korean state media reported on the launch of the country’s first “tactical nuclear attack submarine. Picture: KCNA VIA KNS/AFP

In 2023, North Korean state media reported on the launch of the country’s first “tactical nuclear attack submarine” – although the South Korean military said at the time that the vessel might not be operational.

According to the Nuclear Threat Initiative, a US-based think tank, North Korea is estimated to have between 64 and 86 submarines, one of the world’s largest fleets.

North Korea is estimated to have between 64 and 86 submarines. Picture: KCNA VIA KNS/AFP

However, experts doubt if all of them are operational given their age, according to NTI.

Ties between Pyongyang and Seoul are at one of their lowest points in years. Picture: KCNA VIA KNS/AFP

It could pose a major threat. Picture: KCNA VIA KNS AFP

Ties between Pyongyang and Seoul are at one of their lowest points in years, with the South accusing Kim Jong-un of sending thousands of soldiers to Russia to help Moscow fight Ukraine, violating rafts of sanctions on both countries.

Last week, North Korea carried out a test-launch of strategic cruise missiles in the Yellow Sea, in a drill Pyongyang said was aimed at showing off its “counter-attack” capabilities.

Joint South Korea-US “Freedom Shield” military exercises are set to begin later this month, and the USS Carl Vinson, the flagship of a carrier strike group, arrived in Busan for a scheduled port visit on Sunday, prompting an angry retort from Pyongyang.

Washington and Seoul describe such exercises as defensive in nature, but Pyongyang claims they are rehearsals for invasion and has responded with weapons tests of its own.

The two Koreas remain technically at war since the 1950-1953 Korean War ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty.

Originally published as Kim Jong-un inspects ‘nuclear-powered submarine’ project