Satellite images show damaged North Korean warship moved to a port for repair: Report
Sign up now: Get insights on Asia's fast-moving developments
The new North Korean warship undergoing repairs at a dry dock facility in Rajin on June 8.
PHOTO: AFP
SEOUL – A North Korean stricken destroyer that partially capsized during a botched launch has arrived at a ship repair factory, a Washington think-tank said.
The destroyer, the country’s newest warship, was moved to the graving dock at Rajin Dockyard, also known as Rajin Ship Repair Factory, by June 8, the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said, based on satellite imagery.
State media reported on June 6 that experts would examine the hull for the next stage of restorations, to be carried out at Rajin Dockyard for seven to 10 days.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who witnessed the failed launch of the destroyer, called the accident a “criminal act”
Since the accident in May, North Korea has said it detained several officials, and Mr Kim ordered the ship restored before a ruling party meeting in June.
The Rajin shipyard, located near the Russian border, has produced many of North Korea’s larger warships for decades, CSIS said.
“Once any critical repairs or restoration works are completed, the vessel will likely be transferred to the shipyard’s fitting-out dock, where its weapons and other systems will be installed and subsequently commissioned,” the think-tank said in a report.
The ship lay on its side in the water after the botched launch, but it was pulled upright, according to US researchers and the South Korean military.
The 5,000-ton destroyers launched by North Korea in 2025 are the country's largest warships yet, part of Mr Kim's push to upgrade its naval power with vessels capable of carrying and launching dozens of missiles. REUTERS
