North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has reprimanded officials over a “serious accident and criminal act” that resulted in damage to a newly built warship, state media has reported.
The 5,000-tonne destroyer suffered damage to its hull when a transport cradle detached prematurely during a launch ceremony in the northeastern city of Chongjin, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Thursday, blaming the incident on “inexperienced command and operational carelessness”.
After witnessing the incident, Kim made the “stern assessment” that the accident was caused by “absolute carelessness, irresponsibility and unscientific empiricism,” which “could not be tolerated”, the KCNA said.
Kim “warned solemnly” that officials responsible for the botched launch “would have to be dealt with” at the next meeting of the central committee of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea, and “censured them for the fault”, according to the KCNA.
Kim ordered the vessel to be fixed in time for a plenary meeting of the party’s central committee in June, describing the vessel’s restoration as “not merely a practical issue but a political issue directly related to the authority of the state”, according to the KCNA.
South Korea’s military said Pyongyang appeared to have failed to complete a side-launch of the ship, and it had partially capsized.
Official admissions of incompetence are uncommon in North Korea, where the ruling Kim family enjoy a near God-like status.
The disclosure comes after Kim attended the launch of a “new multipurpose destroyer” equipped with “the most powerful weapons” on April 25.
In state media reports at the time, Kim hailed the vessel as “indispensable in building up our capability for stoutly defending our maritime sovereignty” and an “important starting point of our journey towards building an advanced maritime power”.
“I feel infinitely honoured to proclaim the birth of the first warship of a new generation,” Kim was quoted as saying.
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