SEOUL / WASHINGTON – Northern Korea, which was notedly secret, quickly owned the sloppy launch of a 5,000 -ton naval destructive ship which listed laterally in front of the supreme leader Kim Jong one because the error was too great to hide, experts said.
Central Korean television led by the State, or KCTV, reported Thursday that the ship had lost stability when it was launched at the shipyard in the northeast port city of Chongjin, going around the water while the severe launch sled was detached prematurely.
The ship had taken water and suffered damage caused by the hull due to poor manipulation and “incompetent command”, according to the report.
Kim Jong Une, who was launching, sentenced Wednesday accident in unusually strong language. He called it a “serious and unacceptable accident” caused by “negligence, irresponsibility and non -scientific empiricism” and described it as a “serious criminal act”, reported the press agency managed by the state.
He ordered that the destroyer was fully restored before the June Party of the Party of the Purchase Party, stressing that the question is not simply technical but a political emergency and a national dignity.
Malt management and not sabotage
The leading rhetoric of the leader and his media reports of his regime were unusually direct recognition of negative news in the totalitarian, but not unprecedented country.
Although North Korea is notoriously secret, especially with regard to internal failures, analysts observed a notable change under the direction of Kim Jong one. The regime has occasionally Chosen to recognize major setbacks, such as failing satellite launches or economic gaps.
Bruce Klingner, principal researcher at the Heritage Foundation, a Washington -based reflection group, told Radio Free Asia that Pyongyang probably realized that the launch of the ship was too visible to hide, in particular with easily available commercial satellite imagery.
“The characterization of Kim of the incident as a” criminal act “probably refers to mismanagement, not sabotage,” said Klingner. “By admitting failure, the diet reappears it as a problem of leadership and discipline, rather than a technical deficiency.”
This is part of an emerging model. Kim Dong-Yub, professor at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, said that, just as Kim openly admitted a launch of military satellite failed last year, his government now seems to use these public thanks as a strategic tool-transforming failure into an opportunity to demonstrate its resolution. By depicting recovery efforts as “patriotic struggles”, he seeks to strengthen the internal unity and to instill a feeling of renewed loyalty among civil servants.
Kim Dong -Yub said in an article on Facebook that unusually severe reprimand could aim to recondition the accident as a loyalty test – an opportunity to redemption by devotion to the leader.
An official of the South Korean Ministry of Unification, information journalists on the customary state of anonymity, also said that the Kim directive to fully restore the damaged warship suggested that it was not beyond the repair, although it has undergone serious structural damage.
Blue cover
South Korea joint chiefs have confirmed that American and South Korean information had monitored the launch preparations. They evaluated the lateral launch as a failure and noted that the destroyer remains lower than the water.
“The destroyer is currently lying on the side,” said spokesperson Lee Sung-Jun. He added that the design of the ship seems similar to the Choe Hyon Ho, a destroyer that was launched last month using a flotation method at the Nampo shipyard. The launch of Wednesday was by a less common side or lateral method.
The two destroyers are the most advanced naval ships in North Korea.
The first destructive is designed to transport weapons systems, including ballistic and cruising missiles capable of nuclear power, state media reported last month. He had to enter active service at the start of next year and Kim Jong one supervised missile tests of the warship.
The Open Source Center (OSC) based in the United Kingdom has published satellite images showing the result of the sloppy launch on Wednesday on its X account. The photo shows about two-thirds of the shell of the ship exposed above the flotation line, listed by the right side. A large blue tarpaulin covers part of the ship.
Missile launches
Shortly after the news of the accident, North Korea launched several cruise missiles in the East Sea near Seondeok in the southern province of Hamgyong, according to the South Korean army. Authorities analyze the launch site and missile trajectories.
The launch of cruise missiles intervened only 14 days after a launch of short-range ballistic missiles on May 8 and may have been an attempt to reaffirm military confidence after the launch of the ship, said the South Korean joint staff.
Edited by Mat Pennington.