Overview
- Kim inspected an 8,700-ton nuclear-powered submarine at a production facility as KCNA released images showing a largely finished hull.
- The agency quoted him ordering faster “nuclear armament of the naval forces” and setting a plan to restructure the navy and create new units.
- State media reported tests of “new high-flying” long-range air-defense rockets that struck dummy targets at an altitude of 200 kilometers.
- Pyongyang framed the initiatives as a response to South Korea’s nuclear-submarine plans backed by the United States and to the USS Greeneville’s port call in Busan.
- Independent verification is scarce, and analysts questioned the submarine’s operational status and whether the displayed hull could be a mock-up.