News Screen – North Korean leader Kim Jong-un announced major plans to strengthen his country’s maritime power by building 10,000-ton warships and continuing a nuclear weapons program for the navy.
Kim made this statement while attending the inauguration ceremony of the Choe Hyon warship in Nampho Port City, Tuesday, June 23 2026, as reported by North Korean state media, KCNA.
In his speech, Kim emphasized that the program to strengthen the navy with nuclear capabilities was proceeding according to plan and was an important part of the national defense strategy.
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“The program to arm the navy with nuclear weapons is proceeding as planned. This step is important to maintain the readiness of the country’s nuclear forces in various operations,” said Kim.
The Choe Hyon warship is one of two destroyers of around 5,000 tonnes launched by North Korea in its military modernization program. Previously, the ship was also reported to have been used in a cruise missile test supervised directly by Kim Jong-un.
In addition, Kim revealed that North Korea would soon operate the Kang Kon destroyer before continuing construction of a 10,000-ton strategic warship.
According to him, the government is targeting the construction of two surface warships every year with greater capacity and capabilities than the Choe Hyon, including a 10,000 ton class cruiser.
The plan is seen as Pyongyang’s attempt to strengthen its military deterrence amid ongoing tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
Military observer from Sangji University, Choi Gi-il, assesses that the 10,000 ton figure has symbolic value for North Korea because it shows the country’s ambition to catch up with South Korea’s maritime capabilities, which currently has a larger fleet of warships.
Meanwhile, North Korea expert from Kyungnam University, Lim Eul-chul, believes that the development of a nuclear-armed naval fleet is also a strategic message aimed at the United States and its allies.
According to him, the deployment of ship-based cruise missiles that can carry nuclear warheads will increase North Korea’s deterrence capabilities while adding challenges to the defense systems of South Korea and the United States.
Kim Jong-un’s latest announcement comes just days after he called for accelerated military modernization at a key meeting of the Workers’ Party of Korea. On this occasion, he accused the United States and South Korea of continuing to increase tensions in the region to the point of approaching the risk of nuclear conflict.
Until now, North Korea and South Korea are technically still at war because the 1950-1953 conflict ended with a ceasefire agreement, not a peace treaty.
On the other hand, the United States still has around 28,500 military personnel stationed in South Korea as part of its defense commitment to its ally.***
