London – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un says “serious accidents” that affect the launch of the country’s latest warship on Wednesday “is a criminal act caused by pure carelessness,” reported the country’s government media.
The Korean central news agency managed by the government reported that the launch failed after the ship was trapped at the launch of the sobs and tips, causing damage to the bottom of the ship. The incident occurred at the Cheongjin shipyard in the northeast of the country.
Kim-who was present for the launch of a 5,000 ton-“” making a strong assessment that this was a serious accident that was impossible, could not be tolerated, and was a criminal act caused by pure carelessness, irresponsible and unscientific empiricism, “KCNA reported.
Kim “firmly warned” several government agencies and institutions, said KCNA, including the Department of Folption Industry, the State Science Academy Dynamics Institute, Kim Chaek University and Central Ship Design Institute.
Satellite images show the new North Korean warship in Harbor before being launched, in Chongjin, North Korea, on May 18, 2025.
Maxar Technologies/Via Reuters
Kim said those who were responsible would be “handled” at the meeting of the party’s central committee next month, said KCNA.
The ship launched on Wednesday is the second of North Korea’s new destroyer. The first – Choe Hyon – was launched in April.
During the ceremony to launch Choe Hyon at the Port of Nampo on the western coast of the country, Kim said the construction of ships represented “breakthrough” in the modernization of the North Korean Navy.
Kim also said he “intended to build a blue water operational fleet”-which means the power capable of operating in the open sea rather than solely in the coastal waters around the Korean Peninsula.
ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman contributed to this report.