Anadolu staff
13 June 2025•Update: 13 June 2025
ANKARA
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended the relaunch of a repaired 5,000-ton destroyer that was damaged during a failed launch attempt in May, state media reported on Friday.
Kim also unveiled a plan to build two more destroyers next year, according to the Korean Central News Agency.
The launch ceremony took place Thursday at the Rajin shipyard, where the vessel — now named the Kang Kon — was successfully relaunched after undergoing repairs.
Named after Kang Kon, the first chief of the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army who was killed in the Korean War, the destroyer is part of North Korea’s expanding naval development program.
The ship's initial launch in May in the eastern port city of Chongjin failed when the stern slid ahead of the bow, causing structural damage and preventing the destroyer from fully exiting the shipway.
At the ceremony, Kim also announced the Central Military Commission has approved a plan to build two additional 5,000-ton-class destroyers next year.
Citing escalating threats from the United States and its allies, Kim warned that Pyongyang will respond with “corresponding” might and “absolute military actions,” effectively rejecting recent diplomatic overtures from Washington.
"The provocative intentions of the U.S. military and its follower countries have become even more explicit recently, and the level of threats to our security has clearly surpassed the dangerous limit," Kim was quoted as saying.
*Writing by Aamir Latif
