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North Korea Reveals Nuclear Submarine, And It Is Ginormous
North Korea revealed its first nuclear submarine, with reports of Kim Jung Un's visit to the shipyard appearing in North Korean state media and reported in Western media. State media stated that Kim "learned about the building of a nuclear-powered strategic guided missile submarine, which is being pushed forward according to the decisions of the Eighth Congress of the WPK (Workers’ Party of Korea)." While only two images have emerged so far, and they only show a portion of the lower hull, it is clear that the submarine is much larger than earlier North Korean types.
Preliminary estimates, based on the known height of the North Korean leader (5' 7" / 1.71m), suggest that the hull is around 12.5 meters (41 ft) in diameter. Caution is needed with such estimates at this stage, but is is clearly a 'full sized' nuclear submarine. The size makes it similar to nuclear submarines in service with the United States, Britain and Russia.
This makes it at least four times larger than North Korea's current largest submarine, the 'Hero Kim Gun-Ok'. That modified ROMEO class submarine can carry 10 missiles in a pronounced turtle back. None of Hero Kim Gun-Ok's missiles are long range ballistic missiles, instead being KN-23 Hwasong-11S short range ballistic missiles and Pulhwasal-3-31 cruise missiles. This suggests that the new hull will indeed carry larger full-range 'Pukguksong' weapons.
Photo from North Korean State Media (colour adjusted for analysis)
North Korea had been working on a version of the ROMEO Mod to carry full-size Pukguksong missiles, but that submarine has never been seen in the water. Possibly the conversion was abandoned and this new boat will be North Korea's first true ballistic missile submarine.
Photo from North Korean State Media (colour adjusted for analysis)
It is significant that North Korea is building a full-size nuclear powered submarine. Construction of the hull seems far along, with hull sections joined together. While the eventual launch of the submarine may still be some way away, the direction of development seems clear.
It can be speculated that Russia is assisting North Korea with the new submarine. While North Korea has had nuclear capabilities for some years, the development of a submarine reactor would be a significant challenge. Russia however has extensive experience and may have provided help as part of its weapons and troops acquisition for its invasion of Ukraine.
North Korean propaganda needs to be taken with a grain of salt, especially such grand projects. But the regime has a proven track record of building sophisticated weapons and is a nuclear power, and has talked about constructing a nuclear submarine before. So construction of a nuclear boat isn't entirely unexpected and should not be dismissed out of hand. However, completion of such a project appears an incredible challenge for the impoverish nation.
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