North Korea unveils nuclear-powered submarine for the first time

(Patria) - North Korea yesterday unveiled a nuclear-powered submarine under construction, which could pose a major security threat to South Korea and the US.

State media released photos showing the submarine equipped with strategic nuclear-guided missiles during leader Kim Jong-un's visit to the shipyard.

- This submarine appears to be of the 6,000 or 7,000-ton class and can carry up to 10 missiles - said Moon Keun-sik, a South Korean submarine expert teaching at Hanyang University in Seoul.

He states that the use of the term "strategic guided missiles" means it can carry nuclear weapons.

- This would be absolutely dangerous for us and for the US - Keun-sik added.

The North Korean military's ability to launch missiles underwater is a worrying development, as it is difficult for its rivals to detect such launches in advance.

It is unclear how North Korea, which is under sanctions, could have obtained the resources and technology to build nuclear-powered submarines.



Keun-sik said that North Korea may have received Russian technological assistance to build the nuclear reactor to be used in the submarine in exchange for supplying weapons and troops for the war against Ukraine.

The nuclear-powered submarine was among a long list of sophisticated weaponry that Kim Jong-un promised to introduce into the North Korean military in 2021 to counter "escalating military threats led by the US".

Other weapons included intercontinental ballistic missiles, hypersonic weapons, spy satellites, and multiple warhead missiles. North Korea has since carried out a series of activities to acquire them.

Kim Jong-un added that North Korea could launch the submarine in one or two years to test its capabilities before its actual deployment.

It is estimated that North Korea has 70-90 diesel-powered submarines. However, they are mostly old, capable of launching only torpedoes and mines, but not missiles.

In 2023, North Korea said it had launched its first "tactical nuclear attack submarine," but foreign experts doubted this announcement and speculated that it was likely a diesel submarine. Keun-sik said there is no confirmation that it is real.