North Korea Investigates Setbacks in Naval Missile Test Operations

SEOUL, May 23 (Reuters) – North Korea is diving deep into the inquiry of a mishap that occurred during a warship launch earlier this week, as reported by state media KCNA. The incident on Wednesday was attributed to an imbalance while launching the vessel, resulting in damage to parts of the ship’s underside.

An internal review revealed no significant breaches in the hull; however, scratches were noted on the starboard side, and seawater managed to seep into the stern through a rescue channel. Fortunately, officials deemed the damage “not serious” but have tasked an investigative team with uncovering what went wrong and identifying those accountable. Notably absent from reports were any mentions of injuries or fatalities linked to this event.

Kim Jong Un, who observed the launch of a 5,000-ton destroyer at chongjin’s shipyard on Wednesday, expressed his discontent by labeling it a “criminal act” that should not be overlooked.Analysts suggest that witnessing such an incident before a large audience only adds to Kim’s public embarrassment.

According to South Korea’s military updates from Thursday, it seems the ship ended up capsized in shallow waters. The U.S.-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) analyzed satellite images indicating that while part of the vessel remained on land during its launch attempt, its stern had swung out into harbor due to wheeled units slipping beneath it.

Chongjin’s shipyard has primarily focused on building cargo and fishing vessels rather than large warships like this new destroyer—an area where they clearly lack experience according to CSIS insights. Experts estimate it could take two or three days just to pump out seawater from inside and about ten days for repairs needed for righting the vessel.

KCNA emphasized treating this accident seriously as part of broader efforts against carelessness and negligence within their operations. Following thes events, Hong Kil Ho—the manager at Chongjin—was called in by law enforcement authorities as they began detaining individuals involved in this unfortunate situation.

(Reporting by Hyunsu Yim; Editing by Chris Reese and Jamie Freed)