North Korea is reportedly secretly building a nuclear-powered submarine, The Washington Times reported Sunday.
According to the Japanese-language newspaper Sekai Nippo, the size of the nuclear-powered sub under construction is unclear, but Kim Jong Un’s regime hopes to have it deployed within three years, the Washington Times reported.
Chinese and Russian engineers are reportedly involved in the push – and construction has been occurring secretly since January inside a dock near Nampo, a port city roughly 30 miles from Pyongyang, the Times said.
Nampo is also home to factories manufacturing electronic and machine products, making it “ideally suited for building a submarine,” said the Sekai Nippo report, which was published last week, according to the Times.
The building of a nuclear-powered sub would mark a significant evolution for North Korea’s fleet, which now includes between 50 and 60 diesel-electric subs, the Times reported.
According to the Times, the vessel could potentially be used to move the Pukguksong-1 submarine launched ballistic missile (SLBM) into international waters and evade existing U.S., Japanese and South Korean missile defenses.
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