North Korea has shown off for the first time a nuclear submarine under construction, a weapon that poses a significant security threat to South Korea and the United States.
State media on Saturday released images showing a “nuclear-powered strategic missile submarine” as they reported on leader Kim Jong Un's visits to major shipyards where military vessels are being built.
The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) did not provide details about the submarine, but said Mr. Kim was aware of the process of its creation.
Moon Geun-sik, a South Korean submarine expert and lecturer at Hanyang University in Seoul, said the naval vessel is likely in the 6,000- or 7,000-ton class and can carry about 10 missiles.
According to him, the use of the term “strategic guided missiles” implies the possibility of equipping them with nuclear weapons.
“That would be absolutely dangerous for us and the United States,” Mr. Moon said.
National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said: “We are aware of these allegations and have no further information to provide at this time.”
“The United States is committed to the complete denuclearization of North Korea.”
The nuclear submarine was among long-awaited advanced weapons developments that Mr Kim announced at a key policy conference in 2021 to counter what he called growing military threats from the United States.
The list of other weapons includes solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missiles, hypersonic weapons, spy satellites and multiple-warhead missiles.
Since then, North Korea has conducted a number of tests with the aim of developing them.
North Korea's growing ability to launch missiles from underwater is worrying because it makes it difficult for adversaries to detect such launches in advance.
There are questions about how North Korea, under severe sanctions and facing economic hardship, could obtain the resources and technology to build nuclear submarines.
Mr Moon noted that North Korea could receive assistance from Russia in technology to build a nuclear reactor to be used on a submarine in exchange for conventional weapons and troops to support Russia in its military action against Ukraine.
He also said North Korea could launch the submarine within one to two years to test its performance before actual deployment.
North Korea's fleet is estimated to consist of 70-90 diesel submarines, making it one of the largest in the world.
However
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
