A major accident occurred at the launch ceremony for a new North Korean naval destroyer, state media reported, with leader Kim Jong-un calling the mishap a “criminal act”.
At a ceremony to launch a new 5,000-tonne vessel in the eastern port city of Chongjin on Wednesday “a serious accident occurred”, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.
South Korea’s military said North Korea also fired “multiple unidentified cruise missiles” yesterday, which were detected near the North’s South Hamgyong province after being “fired toward the East Sea”, also known as the Sea of Japan.
Blaming “inexperienced command and operational carelessness” for the destroyer’s botched launch – which was observed by Kim – KCNA said there was a mishap which left “some sections of the warship’s bottom crushed”.
It added that the accident managed to “destroy the balance of the warship”.
Kim watched the incident and declared it a “criminal act caused by absolute carelessness”, warning it “could not be tolerated”.
He said the “irresponsible errors” of officials responsible would be “dealt with at the plenary meeting of the Party Central Committee to be convened next month”.
South Korea’s military said the US and Seoul intelligence authorities assess that the North’s “side-launch attempt” of the ship failed.
“The side-launch method used in this case is no longer employed by South Korea’s military,” Lee Sung-jun, spokesperson for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said.
The vessel is currently listing in the water, Lee said, and based on its size and scale, it is believed to be similarly equipped to the 5,000-tonne destroyer-class warship Choe Hyon, which North Korea unveiled last month.
Last month, Pyongyang’s state media ran images of Kim attending a launching ceremony of Choe Hyon with his daughter Ju-ae, considered by many experts to be his likely successor.
North Korea claimed the vessel was equipped with the “most powerful weapons”, and that it would “enter into operation early next year”.
Some analysts said the ship could be equipped with short-range tactical missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads – although North Korea has not proven it has the ability to miniaturise its atomic arsenal. — AFP
