The North Korean regime failed, with the Supreme Leader as a witness in the front row, in its latest attempt to flex its naval muscle by presenting its new and powerful warship to the world. The ship capsized, and Kim Jong-un, labeling the accident as a "criminal act," promised severe punishment. That happened on Thursday. This Sunday, heads have started to roll.
North Korea arrested three officials from the shipyard in the port city of Chongjin, where an unsuccessful attempt was made to launch a 5,000-ton destroyer, the second of that size built by Pyongyang. State media reported that the chief engineer of the shipyard, Kang Jong Chol, along with the head of the workshop where the ship's hull was constructed, Han Kyong Hak, and the deputy director of the local administrative office, Kim Yong Hak, had been detained.
The unveiling of this destroyer was supposed to be another show of strength for Kim in his efforts to modernize the North Korean navy. Instead, during the ceremony, the ship lost balance when engineers tried to push it sideways into the water.
A satellite image taken after the accident showed the capsized destroyer, with the stern in the water and the bow still stuck on the ramp. It was covered with blue tarps, apparently to conceal it from the spying satellites of neighboring South Korea and the United States.
Kim stated that the accident damaged the country's dignity and promised to punish those responsible. Just a month ago, North Korea had unveiled its first large destroyer, named Choe Hyon, claiming it was equipped with the "most powerful weapons" and would be operational from 2026. At that time, many international analysts pointed out that the isolated and impoverished regime of Pyongyang had to rely on the help and technological resources of its ally Russia for the construction of this warship.
Following the latest accident, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank, released a report in which its analysts suggested that the Chongjin shipyard, which has mainly produced cargo ships and fishing vessels, was not prepared for the launch of a destroyer because it "lacks significant experience in manufacturing large warships."
On the other hand, experts claim that the pressure from the North Korean dictator to showcase his new war toy after the successful presentation of the first destroyer would have pushed the engineers of Chongjin to "cut corners", starting with launching the latest ship sideways, a method that requires delicate balance due to the heavy armament of the ship's skeleton and had never been used before in North Korea.