North Korea last week unveiled the 5,000-ton destroyer equipped with what it called the most powerful weapons systems built for a navy vessel. During Friday’s launching ceremony at the western port of Nampo, Kim called the ship’s construction “a breakthrough” in moderRussia and North Korea on Wednesday began construction of a road bridge between the two countries that will span the Tumen river, part of an effort to strengthen their strategic partnership, Russia’s prime minister said.
The bridge is being built near the existing “Friendship Bridge,” a rail bridge which was commissioned in 1959 after the Korean war.
At a ceremony dedicated to the start of the new bridge’s construction, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said it was a significant event in Russian-North Korean relations, the TASS state news agency reported.
“The significance goes far beyond just an engineering task,” Mishustin was quoted as saying. “It symbolizes our common desire to strengthen friendly, good-neighborly relations and increase inter-regional cooperation.”
Russia’s Kommersant newspaper said the bridge will be ready by the summer of 2026.
Mishustin said the bridge “will allow entrepreneurs to significantly increase transportation volumes and reduce transportation costs, ensure reliable and stable supplies of various products, which will contribute to the expansion of trade and economic cooperation,” TASS reported.
About 600 North Korean troops have been killed fighting for Russia against Ukraine out of a total deployment of 15,000, South Korean lawmakers said on Wednesday, citing the country’s intelligence agency.nizing North Korea’s naval forces.
Outside experts say it’s North Korea’s first destroyer and that it was likely built with Russian assistance. They say North Korea’s naval forces lag behind South Korea’s but still view the destroyer as a serious security threat as it could bolster North Korea’s attack and defense capabilities.
The official Korean Central News Agency said Wednesday that Kim watched the tests of the destroyer’s supersonic and strategic cruise missiles, anti-aircraft missile, automatic guns and electronic jamming guns earlier this week.
He appreciated the ship’s combination of powerful strike weapons and conventional defenses and set tasks to speed the nuclear-arming of his navy, the report said.
During the ship’s launching ceremony, Kim said the destroyer will be deployed early next year. He said the acquisition of a nuclear-powered submarine would be his next big step in strengthening his navy. He underscored the need to beef up North Korea’s deterrence capability to cope with what he called escalating US-led hostilities targeting the North.
An analysis of photos of the warship shows that its anti-air radar system is likely from Russia, said Lee Illwoo, an expert with the Korea Defense Network in South Korea. He said the warship’s engine system and some of its anti-air weapons systems also likely came from Russia.
North Korea and Russia have been sharply expanding military and other cooperation in recent years, with the North supplying troops and conventional weapons to support Russia’s war efforts against Ukraine. The US, South Korea and their partners worry Russia will likely in return provide North Korea with high-tech weapons technologies that can enhance its nuclear program as well as shipping other military and economic assistance.
South Korea’s military said Wednesday that South Korean and US intelligence authorities were closely monitoring North Korean warship development. South Korea’s spy agency separately told lawmakers that North Korea won’t likely be able to deploy a nuclear-powered submarine anytime soon without Russian support.
In March, North Korea unveiled a nuclear-powered submarine under construction. Many civilian experts said at the time that North Korea may have received Russian technological assistance to build a nuclear reactor to be used in the submarine.
Lee said the deployment of a warship with an advanced radar system off North Korea’s west coast could sharply bolster its air defense capabilities for Pyongyang, the capital. Lee said South Korea, which has 12 destroyers, still vastly outpaces North Korea’s naval forces. But he said the North Korean destroyer, which can carry about 80 missiles, can still pose a big threat, as South Korea’s navy hasn’t likely braced for such an enemy warship.
