North Korea’s Latest Warship Revealed—What Kim Jong Un Is Hiding at His Shipyards

A new Nampo-class corvette has been spotted at one of North Korea’s shipyards, Japanese defense analyst KPA_bot reported on X on August 20.

According to the analyst, the vessel’s hull was first seen back in February last year, when North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected construction of a Choe Hyon-class destroyer.

The ship’s name and launch date remain unknown.

Nampo-class corvettes were first identified in 2013–2014 through satellite imagery, and later observed at shipyards in Najin and Nampo.

The vessels measure roughly 76 meters in length, 11 meters in beam, and 3.4 meters in draft, with a full-load displacement of 1,300–1,500 tons.

They are armed with RBU-1200 anti-submarine rocket launchers, a 76mm naval gun, twin 30mm AK-230 anti-aircraft guns, and Kumsong-3 anti-ship missiles.

At the end of July, reports emerged that Pyongyang had ordered its shipbuilders to complete a new Choe Hyon-class destroyer within a year. The timeline is not based on construction capability but symbolism: October 10 marks the anniversary of the founding of the Workers’ Party of Korea.

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New North Korean Warships Are All Show, but No Go—And Russia May Be Behind the Curtain

Jun 26, 2025 12:40

Earlier, North Korea moved a newly launched destroyer, damaged during a botched launch in May, to a port near the Russian border, which could signal Russian involvement in the vessel’s repair.

Satellite images taken by Maxar Technologies show the 5,000-ton destroyer in drydock at Rajin, a port within North Korea’s Rason special economic zone, which borders Russia. The unnamed warship capsized on May 21 when its stern slid into the water while the bow remained stuck on land, causing the ship to roll onto its side in a launch failure.

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