North Korea unveils larger strategic nuclear submarine

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on the 25th called South Korea’s nuclear-powered submarine program a “safety threat that must be countered” and unveiled a strategic nuclear-powered submarine larger than the U.S. Virginia-class fleet submarines. This is the first time Kim has directly responded to a South Korea-U.S. agreement on nuclear submarine development.

Analysts say North Korea’s successive military demonstrations, including the completion of its own SSBN, considered the “final weapon” in its nuclear arsenal against the United States, may add a new variable to the security dynamics of Northeast Asia.

During an on-site inspection of the 8,700-ton “nuclear-powered strategic missile submarine construction project,” Kim reportedly said, according to the Korean Central News Agency on the 25th, that “South Korea’s nuclear submarine development plan, agreed upon with Washington at Seoul’s request, will cause instability on the Korean Peninsula” and called it “an aggressive act infringing on our country’s safety and maritime sovereignty.”

His remarks came a day after news that South Korea and the United States had agreed on a separate deal for nuclear-powered submarines on the 23rd and 24th, sending an anti-South Korea and anti-U.S. message.

Kim warned, “If enemies touch our strategic sovereignty and safety, they will certainly pay the price, and anyone considering military action will face merciless retaliation.” He added, “It is our sacred mission to further strengthen the absolute security provided by our nuclear shield and firmly maintain its irreversible status,” emphasizing that “our party and the government of the republic remain committed to ensuring permanent peace and absolute safety for the nation through our nuclear forces,” reaffirming North Korea’s rejection of denuclearization.

A Ministry of Unification official said, “We are closely watching the fact that Kim Jong Un addressed nuclear submarines for the first time,” and added, “The inspection responds to the U.S. nuclear submarine docking in Busan, but the focus seems to be on emphasizing the legitimacy of their own nuclear submarine program and publicizing it externally.”

The North Korean Ministry of Defense also condemned the docking of the U.S. nuclear submarine USS Greenville in Busan, calling it “a serious act of instability that heightens military tensions on the Korean Peninsula and across the region.”

Unlike the first unveiling in March, when only part of the North Korean SSBN hull was shown, the nearly finished hull was revealed nine months later, seen as an effort to showcase progress ahead of the 9th Party Congress early next year. Observers note that North Korea’s SSBN could be launched next year and deployed within three to four years, drawing attention to whether North Korea will operationalize its nuclear submarine capability years ahead of South Korea, which plans to acquire nuclear submarines by the mid-2030s.

North Korean media reported that on the 24th, under Kim Jong Un’s supervision, the Missile General Bureau test-fired a new long-range surface-to-air missile over the East Sea.


Na-Ri Shin journari@donga.com