During a recent inspection of the Nampo shipyard, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un revealed that the new guided missile destroyer Choe Hyon, lead ship of the new class of the North Korean Navy, could be equipped with nuclear weapons. The revelation, reported by state agency KCNA, accompanies the progress made in fleet modernization and marks a new chapter in the country’s naval ambitions, while also confirming the speculations that arose in April when the ship was unveiled.
Displacing 5,000 tons, the Choe Hyon (51) is currently the largest and most advanced warship built by North Korea and is projected to become the cornerstone of a future surface force with nuclear capabilities. According to state sources, the platform could deploy cruise missiles and tactical ballistic missiles with nuclear warheads. At this point, it should not be overlooked that the development of such ships by North Korea cannot be understood without the regional context.
With the United States as its historical adversary, the North Korean leader has expressed his intention to expand the country’s nuclear capabilities due to an increasingly hostile security environment and, above all, the strengthening of military ties between Washington and Seoul.
Intended to reinforce the capabilities of the East Sea Fleet of the North Korean Navy, the first images of this vessel were seen at its launch in late April of this year at the Nampo shipyard facilities, where the unit was built. Thanks to this, some of its notable features could be observed, such as the main armament in the bow section, consisting of a naval gun presumably of 127 mm.
Across the superstructure, point air defense systems of the CIWS type were identified, with a design similar to the navalized version of the Russian Pantsir-ME system. Also visible, on both port and starboard sides, is a pair of AK-630 30 mm rotating anti-aircraft guns per side. However, what has caught the attention of specialists are the various types of vertical launch systems, which could house different types of munitions ranging from air defense missiles to those intended for anti-surface and land-attack missions.
Additionally, between four and five different types of cells were identified that would make up the destroyer’s VLS system, consisting of 32 small cells, 12 medium ones, 20 larger than the previous type, and 10 even larger.
Shortly after its launch, and in line with the above, the North Korean Navy carried out a demonstration of the capabilities of its new destroyer, launching missiles of various types and testing its main artillery system. More than just a technical test, the event was interpreted as a direct message to Washington, Seoul, and Tokyo about Pyongyang’s growing naval power.
Looking ahead to the immediate future, the Choe Hyon (51) is expected to enter the performance and operational capability testing phase in October of this year. In parallel, the second destroyer of the class, the Kang Kon (52), was relaunched on June 12 after a failed attempt on May 21. Kim has previously declared that the country intends to commission two Choe Hyon-class destroyers each year.
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