North Korean Ship Poses New Threat

“SEOUL -- Kim Jong Un is taking his nuclear ambitions to the high seas.

 

On Thursday, the North Korean leader inspected his country's first nuclear-capable warship. The Choe Hyon, named after a celebrated North Korean guerrilla fighter, is capable of carrying nuclear-tipped missiles and will be deployed in June, according to a Friday statement in state media.

 

The new warship is part of Kim's bid to modernize his Soviet-era naval forces and establish nuclear strike capabilities at sea -- potentially presenting a new threat to U.S. and South Korean defenses.

 

Pyongyang wants to extend its nuclear program beyond its soil. A new five-year program unveiled in February includes arming warships and submarines with nuclear weapons.

 

Kim wants to overcome the limits of a nuclear force that is purely land-based. The U.S. and South Korea possess superior surveillance capabilities that could allow them to strike North Korea's land-based assets before nuclear-tipped missiles are fired. Deploying nuclear capabilities at sea would make it harder for Washington and its allies to track all of North Korea's firing bases, weapons experts say.

 

North Korea has tested strategic cruise missiles and antiship cruise missiles from the warship, claiming to have accurately hit targets. State media has said the weapons incorporated an anti-jamming system to help guide the missiles, but weapons experts say it is difficult to verify how advanced Pyongyang's strike capabilities are from the warship.

 

Moreover, a modernized naval fleet would allow North Korea to engage in strategic naval cooperation with both Russia and China, according to Yang Uk, a military expert at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies, a Seoul-based think tank.

 

"Kim Jong Un is showcasing a desire to establish a nuclear-capable naval presence as a member of the CRINK bloc," Yang said. The acronym refers to the loose axis including China, Russia, Iran and North Korea.

 

New state-media photos marked the first time Pyongyang has shown the Choe Hyon warship navigating beyond nearby waters.

 

Pyongyang's naval aspirations benefit from a closer relationship with Moscow that also has involved the deployment of North Korean troops to support Russia in Ukraine.” [1]

 

1. World News: North Korean Ship Poses New Threat. Yoon, Dasl.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 09 May 2026: A7.